i love M.I.A., aka. Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam. if you don't know who she is then what kind of weirdass rock have you been living under!! listen to her shit. it's underground and epic. it begs universal acclaim. it's not pop. it's 'other'; electronica, dancehall, world, jungle, shoegaze (whatever the hell that is) it's just not pop. i refuse it to be because she goes against what most pop artists believe in. and that's superficiality (ok, i'm generalising here but you get my drift). her opinions are in the categories of political, social and racial mainly surrounding the Sri Lankan civil war (she was born in London but of Sri Lankan, or Singalese, origin).
she makes a habit of speaking up, she has a relevant voice in music for a nice change, and she demands that same right for all people: "The Third World deserves freedom of speech just like everyone else. We want to fight the battle to say what we want, whether to be serious or just make fun of ourselves. Thats what Worldtown is about, that's what Paper Planes is about. It's what people in the third world live through." her plain conviction inspires the same feeling in me, that's what great artists manage to seamlessly do. it's that her songs are airy and bombastic and fantastic - they never fail at making me dance, no, grind, especially in my pjs (oh my god Bingo?!?!?!).
you can't help but admire how she combines real world issues with the music we can shuffle to in any respectable nightclub. and her lyrics are dope - with "Lolita was a man-eater...clocked him like a taxi meter" in 10 Dollar, her candy-filled wit is the music to my ears. the song that takes the cake for me is Bamboo Banga. the chorus lead-up conjures images of Shaft, it is that cool, and then it just goes ridiculously funky and there are eastern back-up singers!!!! i have Sri Lankan pride too you see, my mother is a native. but unfortunately i'm not 'of colour' - my dad's Irish, therefore i burn. good times. thinking back, her sound can't compare with anyone else these days because it is such a social and cultural fusion of sounds and ideas whilst being completely enjoyable and not pole-up-your-ass boring.
on top of her already stellar music career (she writes and produces her own material) she adds photographer and fashion designer as notches in her shiny belt (she practically had a Marc Jacobs line dedicated to her) and i'm in love. she's played at kick-ass festivals such as Coachella, Bue and Summer Sonic and has toured with acts like Roots Manuva and LCD Soundsystem. in an interview last year she stated that she'd "love to write songs like The Last Shadow Puppets or something, or like old Blur songs" - i have no doubt i would buy that album.
but man oh man does she love her fluoro, always she looks like a highlighter in a pencil case full of HB pencils but i guess that's her way, and i must admit she does it tastefully and in a way that screams interesting.
Grammies and Academies for her pure genius, she also won a placing in TIME Magazine's top 100 list of "World's Most Influential People" for having "global influence across many genres" and has earned a spot in this blog as a result. word. she's sexy and has a real sense of humour - isn't that all we ever want? oh, did i mention she's a cancer? the best sign in the zodiac by far.
sweethearts can listen here:
www.myspace.com/mia
she makes a habit of speaking up, she has a relevant voice in music for a nice change, and she demands that same right for all people: "The Third World deserves freedom of speech just like everyone else. We want to fight the battle to say what we want, whether to be serious or just make fun of ourselves. Thats what Worldtown is about, that's what Paper Planes is about. It's what people in the third world live through." her plain conviction inspires the same feeling in me, that's what great artists manage to seamlessly do. it's that her songs are airy and bombastic and fantastic - they never fail at making me dance, no, grind, especially in my pjs (oh my god Bingo?!?!?!).
you can't help but admire how she combines real world issues with the music we can shuffle to in any respectable nightclub. and her lyrics are dope - with "Lolita was a man-eater...clocked him like a taxi meter" in 10 Dollar, her candy-filled wit is the music to my ears. the song that takes the cake for me is Bamboo Banga. the chorus lead-up conjures images of Shaft, it is that cool, and then it just goes ridiculously funky and there are eastern back-up singers!!!! i have Sri Lankan pride too you see, my mother is a native. but unfortunately i'm not 'of colour' - my dad's Irish, therefore i burn. good times. thinking back, her sound can't compare with anyone else these days because it is such a social and cultural fusion of sounds and ideas whilst being completely enjoyable and not pole-up-your-ass boring.
on top of her already stellar music career (she writes and produces her own material) she adds photographer and fashion designer as notches in her shiny belt (she practically had a Marc Jacobs line dedicated to her) and i'm in love. she's played at kick-ass festivals such as Coachella, Bue and Summer Sonic and has toured with acts like Roots Manuva and LCD Soundsystem. in an interview last year she stated that she'd "love to write songs like The Last Shadow Puppets or something, or like old Blur songs" - i have no doubt i would buy that album.
but man oh man does she love her fluoro, always she looks like a highlighter in a pencil case full of HB pencils but i guess that's her way, and i must admit she does it tastefully and in a way that screams interesting.
Grammies and Academies for her pure genius, she also won a placing in TIME Magazine's top 100 list of "World's Most Influential People" for having "global influence across many genres" and has earned a spot in this blog as a result. word. she's sexy and has a real sense of humour - isn't that all we ever want? oh, did i mention she's a cancer? the best sign in the zodiac by far.
sweethearts can listen here:
www.myspace.com/mia
the most memorable sentences for me in M.I.A.'s songs:
"Physical, brute force
Steel lion you're the boss
Yeah, you're so do-able
Grind me down sugar, slow"
"Quit bending all my Fingo
Quit beating me like you're a Ringo
You wanna go?
You wanna win a war?"
"Jumpin' girl to girl
Make us meat like burgers
When I get fat
I'll pop me out some leaders"
"Tap, tap that bed to the wall!
Does this look good to ya, mista?
Well you stare like you just saw a film star
Hipper than the average chica
Does it make that heart go quicker?"
xx
"Physical, brute force
Steel lion you're the boss
Yeah, you're so do-able
Grind me down sugar, slow"
"Quit bending all my Fingo
Quit beating me like you're a Ringo
You wanna go?
You wanna win a war?"
"Jumpin' girl to girl
Make us meat like burgers
When I get fat
I'll pop me out some leaders"
"Tap, tap that bed to the wall!
Does this look good to ya, mista?
Well you stare like you just saw a film star
Hipper than the average chica
Does it make that heart go quicker?"
xx
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