M.I.A. Paper Planes Cracks Top 40

Posted by James W. Coates Jul 31, 2008

As her album Kala nears its first anniversary, M.I.A.’s gun-tottin’ single “Paper Planes” finally cracks the Billboard top 40. Plowing in at an impressive number 36 in its second week on the tally (the track debuted last week at a respectable number 55) the track looks top ten bound. The single has perched atop the iTunes dance music download chart for months. Politically charged “Paper Planes”, doesn’t fit the typical dance track mold with lyrics such as “Third world democracy / Yeah, I got more records than the K.G.B. / So, uh, no funny business,” and a chorus featuring gun shots and the clinking of cash registers as she threats to take your money. But like most of M.I.A.’s material, it reflects a world turned on its ear. Born in London, England, her family moved to their homeland of Sri Lanka when M.I.A. (born Maya Arulpragasam) was six months old. The family later relocated to Madras, India. Civil war in Sri Lanka forced the family to flee the country and M.I.A. returned to London later in life to study art. Her music, a mix of hip-hop, electronica and dancehall became a big hit with local DJ’s and garnered the attention of Record Company XL, for whom she recorded her debut album Arular in 2005. At the beginning of this year, her first single from Kala, “Jimmy” danced all the way up to number 16 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, giving her a taste of the recognition and respect this talent deserves. Kala was released in August of 2007.