collateral damage

Well, the New York Times Magazine cover story is an in-depth profile of M.I.A. readying her third album, and it's not flattering. Maya comes off as politically pretentious and painfully bratty, munching on French fries drizzled with truffle oil while complaining about why she's unfairly been labelled a terrorist (and how she is totally a terrorist!) Maya is apparently royally pissed about how she is depicted; today, she tweeted the article's author's personal cell phone number.

But I'm not sure that changes how I think about her music. Having pop stars put out great beats, forward-thinking albums, and compelling visuals is their job, but being a well-spoken, likable person who is logically and politically consistent is sort of supererogatory. Yes, it's well within the media's rights to question and criticize the accuracy and consistency of an artist's record, but whether or not M.I.A. is herself a balanced and progressive global citizen isn't the issue. Having read a lot of M.I.A.'s textual record, it did not in fact surprise me that she was as contradictory (and shallow) in person as her blogging might lead you to believe (ha!).

But here's the thing: Maya puts out music that generates a discussion about terrorism, globalization, genocide, and subaltern alienation. Her politics might not be logical or balanced or well-informed, they might even be dangerous and sometimes inaccurate. But neither are they distractions from the art (hello, U2) or hackneyed tropes that have been played to death for decades (Green Day or whoever).* They are part of the body of work that she's created and they are relevant both to that work and to our world. And isn't that cool? Whether it's "Paper Planes" from Kala or "Amazon" (my favorite M.I.A. track) from Arular, M.I.A. creates fantastic sounding music that speaks directly to the most exciting political issues of our day--even if Maya herself has trouble speaking eloquently and consistently about those same issues. Yes, she glamorizes and perhaps even fetishizes aspects of so-called third world culture and politics, but she's not just taking colored prints and beats, she's taking ideas and ideologies. It's bound to get messy, and it's also pretty fascinating.

So, it's our job to be critical consumers of the product she puts out and to seek alternative viewpoints (why haven't we heard Kesha's thoughts on the Tamil Tigers, I wonder). The ultimate point being I can take issue with, for example, M.I.A.'s glamorization of terrorism while still welcoming the discussion and rocking out of the dance floor. So good for Lynn Hirschberg, good for M.I.A. and her collaborators, and good for me.** I mean, have you heard XXXO? That shit is killer.

*Okay, she doesn't get a pass for the "Born Free" video. Yikes.

**For using the following words I learned freshman year: subaltern, supererogatory, trope. M.I.A. isn't the only one who went to college!

Photo credit: Ryan McGinley for the New York Times.