M.I.A.

Songwriter: Pharrell Williams M.I.A.

Producer: Pharrell Williams

[Chorus]
Back in the building, took the elevator
We made it to top and the creator
Back in the scene, checking up on the dream
Everybody out here being a human being
Back in the building, took the elevator
We made it to top and the creator
Back in the scene, checking up on the dream
Everybody out here being a human being

[Verse 1]
Tryna get the feels, tryna get the bills
I get you when you hussel gold
Silver spoons, wishes and booze
Dig at me if I pray to God
I'm the bad, I'm the good, I'm the ugly
The society of variety
If you want tea then I got plenty
Expressing, pressing reality
I got moves, I'm moving all the time
I got moves, I'm moving all the time
I got moves, I'm moving all the time
I got moves, making moves all the time
I just keep it moving, people like you ready
I just keep it moving

[Chorus]
Back in the building, took the elevator
We made it to top and the creator
Back in the scene, checking up on the dream
Everybody out here being a human being
Back in the building, took the elevator
We made it to top and the creator
Back in the scene, checking up on the dream
Everybody out here being a human being

[Verse 2]
Freedom of speech, what the schools teach
M.I.A be preaching now, world town reach
Dark skin on beach, I don't use no bleach
Driving in the street, and my BM goes screech
Rendez-vouz in Greece, they wanna get a piece
Modern day Tolstoy I give them War & Peace
Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six
Why you gotta fuck with me just to be a bitch?
Sheila and Bahgwan 50/50 mix
Mystic, gangsta you should take a trip
World Town intelligence, here for justice
If you try to break me, you better practice

[Chorus]
Back in the building, took the elevator
We made it to top and the creator
Back in the scene, checking up on the dream
Everybody out here being a human being
Back in the building, took the elevator
We made it to top and the creator
Back in the scene, checking up on the dream
Everybody out here being a human being

One of the most musically-diverse and perplexing artists of the 2000s, Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam is arguably the decade’s best representation of Hip-Hop in its truest form and artistry in its broadest, most diverse format. Her lyrics are as political as Public Enemy, her sound is more eclectic than Stankonia-era Outkast, and she is as aesthetically-driven as Kanye West.

The road that M.I.A. was forced to travel to international stardom was not an easy one. Born on July 18th, 1975 in Hounslow, West London to Sri-Lankan Tamil immigrants, she moved to her parents' homeland when she was only six months old. However, it was the Sri Lankan Civil War which came to shape her childhood. During her formative years, she witnessed many her father was hunted as an enemy of the state, her schools were bombarded, and her impoverished family was constantly in hiding. In 1986, her family moved back to London to find stability and a sense of relative peace.

In England, she discovered her artistic talents and completed several years of secondary education in fine art – eventually gaining attention as a visual artist, painter, and musician. In the early-2000s, Maya began to seriously explore her musical talents and used the internet and underground radio as the means to build her reputation as a unique and talented firebrand. Amidst her no-nonsense politics, however, critics from around the world heard a talent in the making.

more tracks from the album

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From the album

Unreleased Songs

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ElevatorM.I.A.

M.I.A.

Unreleased Songs