M.I.A.

Released: August 20, 2013

[Verse 1: M.I.A]
If you ever leave
Then I have to give up everything I believe
Life is nothing but just a fantasy
Since you took away the love that’s left in me
Please talk to me, did you ever fight for me?
And how can I stand by you if I can’t find my feet?
Now you can’t stand me, made me your enemy
Now what did I do for you to call me crazy?

[Chorus: M.I.A.]
If it's your sudden shade, if it's your mind array
Here's a mixtape that I made, let’s take a break
Don’t wanna fuss away, baby, if it’s too late
While I get my life sorted here’s a mixtape

[Post-Hook 1: Lizz E.]
I never thought I'd see
That time for you would be
So far away from home
So far away from me

[Verse 2: M.I.A.]
When you hit your face, tore me up like lace
Yeah, what’s it for if we’re just another case?
Hurt does leave a trace, love the darkest face
And this hole is deeper than the fall that I embrace

[Refrain: M.I.A.]
Did you fight for me? Did you cry for me?
Yeah, and how can I stand by you if I can’t find my feet?

[Chorus: M.I.A.]
If it's your sudden shade, If it's your mind array
Here's a mixtape that I made, let’s take a break
Don’t wanna fuss away, baby if it’s too late
While I get my life sorted here’s a mixtape

[Post-Hook 2: Graham Coxon]
Oh my baby, oh my baby
Oh why? Oh my
Oh my baby, oh my baby
Oh why? Oh my

[Refrain: M.I.A.]
Did you fight for me? Did you cry for me?
Yeah, and how can I stand by you if I can’t find my feet?

[Chorus: M.I.A.]
If it's your sudden shade, If it's your mind array
Here's a mixtape that I made, let’s take a break
Don’t wanna fuss away, baby if it’s too late
While I get my life sorted here’s a mixtape

[Interlude: Carly Simon]
La-di-da-di-da, la-di-da-di-da
La-di-da-di-da, la-di-da-di-da
La-di-da-di-da, la-di-da-di-da
La-di-da-di-da, la-di-da-di-da

[Outro: Karen Dalton]
Please, let me sit down beside you
I've got something to tell you, darling
You ought'a know
I just can't wait, no not another day
I love you, more than words can say

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.

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