M.I.A.

Released: August 8, 2007

Songwriter: Switch M.I.A.

Producer: M.I.A. Switch

Time got me feeling emotions
Why you always digging on my nerve?
I feel weak, when I say "please" you keep on
Does breaking me make you feel more strong?
Does breaking me make you feel more strong?

I go give show you how low I go
Playa boy go 'head and be that macho
Power up that blade on that chainsaw
Go cut me down and I'm still gon grow
Go cut me down and I'm still gon grow

Ahh ahhh ahh
Yeah, he left me, yeah
To go far far away

Cause ahh ahhh ahh
Yeah, he left me, yeah
To go far far away

Coz yesterday I met a girl from Warsaw
She walked like a turtle with a saw paw
Why don't they make some kinda new law
That stops making a religion out of war?
Yeah, happy you know lots of useless info
Keep ticking like a brain on a robot
But I do know some things you don't know
That people you hate come back for more

Ahh ahhh ahh
Yeah, he left me, yeah
To go far far away

Cause Ahh ahhh ahh
Yeah, he left me, yeah
To go far far away

A tug of war with me and he was called for
Like he was iced tea, I was always palmer
But you broke me when you act like you want war
Coz my strength makes you feel insecure

Now here we go, we bouncing like a pinball
I let him go so he can go paint time gold
Why don't we live for that love though?
Or does money still drive you a whole lot more?
Or does money still drive you a whole lot more?

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

Kala

From the albums

Kala (2007)
How Many Votes Fix Mix (2008)

M.I.A. popular songs

Far FarM.I.A.

M.I.A.

Kala