HEAR AND NOW: M.I.A.'s political overtones

With two well-received albums, a plum role on the "Slumdog Millionaire" (2008) soundtrack and an appearance at the Grammys mere days before giving birth, M.I.A., born Maya Arulpragasam, is getting a lot of credit for her too-cool cultural cachet. This view, however, overlooks an essential aspect of her music. As a Briton of Sri Lankan descent, M.I.A. makes no bones about her political views, which is particularly relevant in light of the May 18 ceasefire of the 20-plus year civil war between Sri Lankan authorities and the Tamil Tiger rebels. M.I.A. shows it is possible to obtain mainstream success while being politically relevant. Political engagement is in M.I.A.'s blood. Her father was a founding member of a student group that hoped to establish a separatist state for the Tamil Tigers. Perhaps M.I.A.'s greatest strength is her ability to poignantly humanize individuals caught in conflict. "Every gun in a battle is a son and daughter too," she rhymes on "Pull Up the People" (2005). M.I.A. takes a more confrontational tone on "$20" (2007), demanding, "Do you know the cost of A.K.s up in Africa / 20 dollars ain't shit to you / But that's how much they are." Chanted over a repetition of "Where is my mind?," a reference to a classic Pixies track from 1988, the song mocks the disconnect between the ignorance of many in the consumer-capitalist West and the realities of the developing world. M.I.A. touches on the problems of the post-Sept. 11, 2001 world in the deceptively benign "Sunshowers" (2005). Perhaps the story of a man apprehended as a potential terrorist, the song goes: "He wasn't there they didn't know him / They showed him a picture then / Ain't that you with the Muslims?" Masked by nearly-jolly backbeats and a romantic chorus, M.I.A. seems to achieve her goal, stated in a 2007 interview for TamilNation.org, of attempting to "write songs about something important and make it sound like nothing." Unsurprisingly, an artist as political as M.I.A. attracts plenty of controversy and detractors. M.I.A. shows that it is indeed possible to find popular success with political music in an industry that celebrates vapidity.