Radio host explains why he walked off his show when bosses told him to stop joking about Demi Lovato
Matt Siegel, the host of the popular Boston-based radio show Matty in the Morning, fired back at his boss on Wednesday's show after he was told to stop talking about Demi Lovato's recent announcement where they revealed they identifies as nonbinary.
According to The Boston Herald, Siegel was in the middle of addressing Lovato's announcement — which included some jokes that are a staple of the longtime host's humor — when he claimed that the higher-ups of his show told him "you cannot talk about what you're talking about." Siegel's home radio station, KISS 108fm, is owned by iHeartMedia.
He acknowledged that while his feelings towards his boss weren't personal, he wasn't going to stand for that kind of pushback and went on a long rant where he threatened to leave the airwaves.
"Today I was anti-wokeness and I can't do that, so basically, what I'm told is, I can talk about light, funny things like where the Jonas Brothers are going to be but I can't do what I really want to do, which is just be a funny comic and tell it like it is," he said on the air. "So I'm ending my portion of the radio show right now. It has been a hell of a run, but I think it's coming to an end."
"By the way, it's a joke — the whole binary thing. I don't care what Demi Lovato does, but now we have to worry about, you might offend someone," Siegel continued. "So I basically offended right-wing people, and today I offended left-wing people."
A Matty in the Morning listener named Kevin Doyle recorded Seigel's rant on Wednesday, sharing it on social media after the show ended.
On Tuesday, Lovato posted an Instagram video sharing the news that their preferred pronouns are now they/them.
"Today is a day I'm so happy to share more of my life with you all — I am proud to let you know that I identify as nonbinary and will officially be changing my pronouns to they/them moving forward," they said.
Despite his comments, Siegel was back on the air Thursday morning, apologizing to listeners and attempting to set the record straight.
"I was on a roll, and I haven't been on a roll in a long time. And that's when I got the call and I just snapped. I just said, 'I can't be here anymore," Siegel said.
Representatives for iHeartRadio and Lovato didn't immediately respond to EW's request for comment.
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