The Internet's Most Controversial Music Critic.. 

just wanna clarify: i say most hated since he is the most known and has controversial takes, so gets a ton of hate. personally i am a fan! edit: also the eminem part- em didn't call him out in particular but we do know em is aware of him so he could have been referring to him who knows

I personally enjoy Fantano, I don’t agree with all of his reviews but he’s still entertaining

I actually think he's one of the internets most LOVED critics tbh

I think Fantanos content is really enjoyable. I often don't agree with his ratings, but rather watch him for his entertainment value. He's funny and cool to watch. Especially when Cal Chuchesta is brought onto episodes.

Anthony is literally one of the nicest guys I’ve ever talked to frfr, wish nothin but da best for him. Fantano da 🐐 no 🧢.

00:42 he literally looks the exact same today 😭

He is single-handedly responsible for opening my eyes and ears up for more obscure, experimental and complex music, rather than always the same Radio hits, which I will forever be thankful for. Music is awesome

“Anthony with hair isn’t real. It can’t hurt you” 1:04

Anthony is EXTREMELY respected. Yeah some people don't agree with his opinions, but his thoughts are all his own, he's not pandering to what his audience wants to hear. As a musician i appreciate that he covers everything from modern rap to brand new death metal and hardcore releases. Anthony is a cool ass dude

Melon is a really chill dude. I remember around the time he started up I discovered his channel while I was in high school. I really liked what he was doing so I DM’d him to see how I could do something similar as a profession and he gave me some really solid advice. I never ended up pursuing it, but that short convo got me into working college radio. Really an awesome guy.

before i watched watty i was broke and had no girlfriend. i watched the “is amine a one hit wonder” video and my life changed. I am now rich and have 10 women in my house. thank you matthew

Very early on I used to see Fantano as a provocateur, someone who just like to hate on what was popular while also sometimes giving what was popular it’s flowers so that he never really seemed like the bad guy. But when I actually started watching his stuff, he’s actually pretty open minded to the vast majority of music out there, but I specifically talk rap.

Don't always agree with his ratings, but I have always loved how he explains his reasoning very well. Didn't know much about his backstory until this video 🔥

I think Fantano is great, it doesn’t matter if you agree with him or not he always explains why he personally doesn’t enjoy something and you almost have to at least respect his opinion on the given topic. I don’t agree with most of his takes but I still watch just to see what he thinks

There's a reason why he's respected. I've been a classical musician for 21 years. I've studied music in depth. The way he discusses music, it is very obvious that he understands music on a deeper level than most pop critics... especially on this platform. What he has to say isn't just hogwash. Also he acknowledges that his takes are just opinions.

I like how people hate Fantano for having an opinion, as if everyone on the planet doesn’t have one. Great video man.

I'm so glad I get to say I've been a supporter of mattyballz since like 30k. I can't wait till this guy blows up he makes better content than people with millions of subscribers. It shocks me how underrated this guy is

Great video man. I like how you put effort into the thatistheplan section since I think that’s a big part of his career that new people don’t know about. Keep up the vids man!

Hey man i've been watching you grow on my deleted acc and during this year you've grown crazy with both quality and consistency since the deep october review been watching since then

Eminem never dissed him. Eminem doesn't even know that he exists. That was a parody video. Even if he were aware of Fantano, he wouldn't mention him because Em has a policy of not making his critics more famous by mentioning them.

Although I disagree with a lot, in fact most of his music takes. I do like to hear his opinions end of the day due to music being objective. He always gives his reasonings for not liking albums and not just saying “this doesn’t sound good”.

I've been a music lover even before YT algorithm brought Fantano to me yeaaaaars ago. But he's one of the reasons why my love for music is still intact. Just for the consistency alone, doing this for a decade+, you gotta respect the man for being consistent. Fantastic creator! Respect!

Your videos are underrated keep it up

the "watching him is like talking to a friend about an album" is really great point i think, i don't get to talk about most albums i heard and don't get much recommendations either so he really fills out this niche for me

I wouldn't describe him as most hated necessarily, I think he definitely has some of the most hated media takes but he's still incredibly well respected online, a comparison you could make might be Karsten Runquist - been dunked on plenty of times but still well received generally

A critic's opinion is best when you have an understanding of who that critic is. If a critic gives everything a 10/10 they are not doing there job. Fantano and all the other critics on RU-vid a wonderful because you start to understand what they like to see or hear, when they say something that you don't agree with its a lot easier to understand as you have a relationship with them and can see why they have those options. It's so much better than a random name hiding behind a larger company like IGN.

I just enjoy watching the way he breaks down his opinions on music and thoughts on my favourite bands and artists, as well as the occasional questions on new trending music topics, whether I agree or disagree. It seems that a majority of the internet forgot his phrase: "Y'know this is just my opinion, right?"

its so sad and enraging what a hitpiece can do. i never watched one of his videos, but i remember i just sort of half read/ passed by a meme once about how he’s a surpremacist or some shit and that just sort of got stuck in the back of my head. like everytime i saw a picture of him, subconsciously i thought of him as problematic. horrible how easily you can get manipulated.

I also love how everyone thinks that fantano is standing the whole time

Fantano changed his entire personality because of that Fader article in 2017 and has been a feeble, hollow shell of his former self ever since.

Great video man, keep it up

Fantano became like one of the same people who published the hit piece on him

he opened me up to so much cool music, even thou i don't watch most of his videos today i still appreciate him for expanding my music taste

I feel like everyone has an unpopular opinion on albums or songs considered to be objectively good. It just so happens that it's melon's job to be open about it

Every time I see one of your videos I get a smile so damn random and creative fucking love it ❤️

His reviews can be pretty critical but at least he’s genuine about it

I found out about his channel last week interesting. Cool video. ^_^

Honestly since I know more or less the scope of music I'm into I don't watch a lot of his videos, typically just the albums I care about or am interested in or have listened to, or the reviews I know will be most entertaining like the NOT GOOD reviews. What makes me a fan is that he found a way to make his reviews super entertaining whist still informative and you can tell from how he is on camera and the review structure he's just being himself. Regardless of how often I agree/disagree with him that's the brilliance of theneedledrop.

Honestly, hating the Melon has just become a meme at this point. Now if you were to see his Twitter or his change after The Fader article and deletion of thatistheplan, then yeah, I can see why people might not like Anthony.

Good video. Usually these videos are just people hating on Anthony

I really like Anthony because he's not scared to express an opinion no matter how controversial they are.

Why Mattyballs is one of the best on RU-vid

I almost always disagree with his score but I really love his videos. Every time an album I'm hyped for droppes, I'm equally hyped to see his review on the album

Someone said something, I know it was a youtube musician, basically about how more often than not, Critics are not also craftsmen, so their critiques about music aren't usually relevant to the artist that's being critiqued. Someone can spend a lot of time becoming a really excellent critic, breaking down the listenability, general appeal, etc. of works of art, but especially in the instances of high level performance that the critic just doesn't enjoy for one reason or another, their bad or middling score is quite meaningless. And that's pretty much the way I feel about Fantano whenever he even attempts to touch Jazz. He's frequently cracked Jacob Collier over the head for 'bad production quality' or being too saccharine, but I don't really think anybody who likes Jacob Collier is listening for production quality.

Good Vid:), while watching i didnt even realise its from a channel with 42k subs, only realised when subbing, Very well made video. Also about fantano, I personally like him and respect his opinion tho i think i form my own opinion even if i take some notes from melon, however its not something im proud of considering fantano does get a lot of hate online 😅.

The funny part is. He’s not even controversial but since he’s the biggest music critic on RU-vid everyone takes his opinions to heart

i think your section addressing his fader controversy was very well done! i loved your decision to include that issue and why it could be so easy to see that and sum up the criticism he gets

ik he gets hated a lot, but I enjoy his videos a lot and I listen to a lot of the albums he reviews. I have a lot of respect for him a lot.

Missed you Matty :)

I usually like Anthony Fantano BUT him calling out Abel's mixtapes (thay became Trilogy) and saying they were bad really made me question him for a bit there because even objectively, they were fantastic.

Although u may not agree with someone his critics, u can’t deny he defo puts a lot of thought into his opinion, beyond just rating an album or a track as simply “good” or “bad”. He defo has an ear for this stuff and is clearly very passionate about music.

Def a measured and fair take. I give it a strong 8.

Nice video !!! Thanks.

Average matty ballz banger 🔥💯🥶

I don't think you can call anyone the "most hated music critic" when Nostalgia Critic exists. Pretty sure everyone hates that guy, and deservedly so imo

Say what you want about Fantano as far as him critiquing music goes, at the end of the day he’s a really entertaining content creator. Between his wit, humor, bluntness, the memes he expertly navigates (“_____thony _______tano here”, “best teeth in the game”, etc.), his almost-always-funny inclusion of Cal Cuechesta (or however you spell it), and his undeniably extensive knowledge of/exposure to music, dude has made one, or two or three, of the most engaging YT channels when it comes to music

Used to dislike both him and Shawn cee when I was younger but now I like them both. It’s just an opinion and it’s good to hear other peoples perspective as well sometimes.

I have very mixed feelings about Anthony Fantano… On the one hand I really respect his music opinions, he’s clearly well versed on music theory, production and lore, yet on the other hand I find him to be quite obnoxious to the point where I had to unfollow him on all social media as he was becoming to irksome for me. It was mainly down to how overly political he became, which don’t get me wrong I completely understand, after a hit piece you do want to try and distance yourself from a persona you were smeared as, however I feel like his transition into being this person was very disingenuous and I’ve always been somewhat sceptical. Don’t get me wrong it was clear Anthony was always a liberal man who just happened to like “edgy humour” I just find it very strange how much of a huge leap he’s gone from being someone who was quite nuanced to now the kind of man who will fingerwag at anyone who so much as makes any joke that is remotely edgy, to me it’s almost like he’s made this change out of fear as opposed to it being more organic. If I compare him to somebody like Pewdiepie another RU-vidr that was known for being very edgy, he’s definitely toned down his act is a far cry from how he use to be, he knows that kind of humour isn’t going to allow him to progress anymore, but yet at the same time still feels like himself despite the obviously change in style (I guess simply put Felix has no presence on Twitter, which for me is a toxic platform where nobody really comes across well, Fantano is a big user which is why I think he is noticeably far more aggressive and prone to arguments, so the comparison isn’t faultless, in this respect he’s far more similar to Ethan Klein who had a similar journey and I think behaves very similar to Fantano on Twitter) But that said since I’ve unfollowed Anthony on everything I can really now just focus on his music opinions which I think are great, by all means you can criticise or dislike the guy but I really have no time for people who say he knows nothing about music when he clearly does, that’s such a stupid take and his other dislikable traits shouldn’t overshadow his clearly vast knowledge of music.

Comparing Fantano to the food critic from Ratatouille was such a hilarious take I will now never forget 😭

dude got good opinions occasionally but all critics are just critics - I enjoy editorials over reviews when it comes to music journalism 🤝

A good critic always challenge your taste and improve it and fantano is one them. He has been on RU-vid more than many artists and he is listening music from a long long time so us who didn't even listen a comolete album of any artist are not the one to say bad things to him.

There is a fall for the past few years, which started when thatistheplan closed, controversial reviews and political drama increased, while the content became rather stale. Still, he is the biggest music critic at the moment, until someone reinvents the scene.

I like Fantano and reason why I find him interesting to listen to is because it’s impossible to predict if he’ll like a song or album. I guess you could say that makes him a contrarian though.

Obviously fantano makes engaging reviews, but another reason i like him is because of how well he is able to turn me onto new music. A good handful of music i listen to now, wouldnt have found its way to me if it wasnt for antknee putting a spotlight on it. Great vid btw. Good summary.

I love Fandango cause I care about his rating, but even if I don’t agree with the numerical rating, he always has a lot to say technically about an album that I think is educational and entertaining

Great vid bout the Melon Head Maty Balz

Mattyballz is the webs most occupied melody geek

Good work brother 👌🏽

my dude matty switching it up 👏

He's hated because ever since The Fader article came out he's been more politically outspoken to counter some of the accusations made in the article. Even though most of his fans at the time knew the article was a fabricated hit piece, he still succumbed to it. It changed him for the worst

I don’t agree with 90% of his opinions but love his reviews and videos. Anthony is massively detailed and gives in well clarity his opinions and explains why he feels how he feels. I personally don’t agree with a lot of his scores but I can see good work and effort when I see it and Fantano is the best when it comes to reviews.

Holy crap, Fantano is literally days younger than me. October 18th over here! Same B-day as Chuck Berry!

One of the critics of all time

Ay bro if u ever need music or beats for the background of your vids i gotchu

00:42 Fantano seriously doesn't age

“Parsed out into these rippity-dippity, rippity-dippity, rippity-dippity triplet flows” I’ve only seen a handful of Fantano’s reviews so I can’t really speak to them. I’ve recently discovered Brad Taste in Music and enjoy his take and humor a lot though 👌🏼

I have respect for Anthony. He has his own opinion and he states while giving details and reason why. Sometimes I disagree but everyone is different

The "meme community" is edgy and when you post something totally neutral it can attract people that don't necessarily get the message and spin it into a totally different view point. It gets traction but they miss the point of what it is meant to say. The post gets popular but it takes off for complete the opposite reason.

Not gonna bother to watch the video just came to add another comment on how Anthony Fantano, far from infamous, is a critic who explains pretty well his reasons for rating an album the way he does, I think he's authentic too, he's not being influenced by anyone to give a particular score, and I think that type of ethical integrity can be somewhat hard to find these days. I usually agree with one out of two reviews of his, but since day one I've enjoyed his sense of humour and his critical eloquence

Love the pizza shout out hahah

Still can’t believe this man has been sitting down this whole time #chairgate

0:27 and 0:48 are laugh out loud moments right there, A+ research in this video

Even though I disagree with some of his points, I really enjoy his videos and love hearing others opinion on music I love and hate; the more controversial the better if you ask me. Makes for some entertaining debates and thought processes. Part of it is due to how chill he is.

I have never heard him give a good review

Haven't personally seen any community or a corner of the internet collectively hate him or anything, ofc there are some individuals but I feel like universally people like him even when they disagree with him on some albums etc

I love him so much. Agree or disagree with his opinions, he has a lot of quality content and a funny personality

I don't know why, but fantano as a cartoonist just makes sense

"most loved, therefore most hated" - Mr. MC Ride

I think as a critic Anthony is very divided, there are people who are bitter over his reviews of albums that they like (Which although not really ideal is understandable as I've done the same over his AM review lol) and there are people who respect his opinion even if they disagree with it most of the time. The part where the more "heated" debate comes from around him is his views on politics, which I'm not going to delve too deep into since I'm politcally uneducated and also just don't care for them. I think if Anthony had just stuck to music reviewing the hate for him would be about a fraction as big as it currently is.

Anthony Fantano: Drake: W Rizz. You got me.

wtf happened at 4:30 when you said he has a leg up? that was strange my friend

I never knew his dad was a powerlifter or he studied political science that makes alot of sense Fantano is probably one of my favourite people (atleast my idea of him)(that's also not saying alot I don't generally like people) He seems like a disciplined dude who does what he's passionate about & is humorous I really enjoyed your video about him & learned some stuff I don't know & He really does have a big impact on people's musical taste Whether it's conscious or not & tho I don't think people follow him directly fantano Core is a real thing but is not only influenced by him also 4-chan and other people😂 But I think the way people think & consume albums is influenced by him but not to be all theoretical I do think that's just how society works imitation in some sense & if anyone's gonna be a taste maker like we have in fashion & alot of arts fantano is a good one

He just seems like a cool dude

He's gonna love this :)

I'm not sure Christ Dillinger is very fond of Fantano either lmao

Before I didn't like him but he really changed me how I listen to music

I started finding more music thats not mainstream and vg osts thanks to him, plus now i also love albums he hates and vice versa lol, so its all good to me, he is a bit corny at times on twitter especially but that's not a crime ya know?

Omg, it’s crazy but the pics of him as a child, he looks EXACTLY the same! He looked like a 30 year old man at 12 😂😂

I found him recently and I enjoy his videos. But once again this culture get all up in there feelings with one having a personal opinion about something. We all are not going to have the same likes or taste in music and what anyone says you take it with a grain of salt. I listen to a lot of different people on RU-vid talk about music and tho I think half of todays music is trash..I watch guys like him to maybe enlighten me to something new that I may be missing out on. I listen to music of the 90s and early 2000s but I’m always willing to know about something new. Plus if one down plays and album I enjoy..I don’t lose my sh*t over it..I just simple say I love or like that album then keep it moving.

0:42 ive never seen a grown person look so much like they did as a kid, or really ive never seen a kid like so much like they would as a grown up