Maya Arulpragasam (also known as M.I.A.) is here to conquer the world, armed with ultra tangy beats and lyrics like, "I bongo, with my lingo, and beat it like a wing, yo."
This UK-based, Sri Lankan emcee is one of the most highly anticipated musical acts this year, and D.C. had more than a dose of it. Many music critics consider M.I.A.'s debut album, "Arular," one of the top 50 albums to own. It has been nominated for music awards like the UK's 2005 Mercury Music Prize.
The 9:30 Club reached its 1,200 capacity and people of all ages, sexes and races awaited M.I.A.'s entrance. In less than an hour, she managed to regurgitate all her songs from "Arular" and her first mixtape, called "Piracy Funds Terrorism, as well as some mad-lib political banter in between.
The show officially started off with her signature clip of Bush and Blair that prompted a few laughs, but the music eventually replaced the politics. M.I.A. swaggered onto the stage with her dancing sidekick in front of the sold out crowd surrounded by neon-colored palm tree cutouts and helicopter and tiger props.
DJ Control substituted for Diplo, the initial turntablist, churning out sound bytes of Kanye West's infamous line, "Bush hates black people" (misquoted from the NBC telethon), with some Missy Elliott, Eurythmics and Ciara samples to transition into each song. Her ambiguous comments, such as "do something" and "change something," never really explained what she wanted them to do and left the crowd confused instead of inspired.
"M.I.A. could have had more energy on stage," Sonal Preston, a 25-year-old California native, said. "There was more reaction from the crowd, and the crowd shouldn't be doing all the work for you."
The quirky beats and hybrids of different dance moves made up for the lack of substantial political messages. "Pull up the People," "Amazon," "Sunshowers," "10 Dollar," "U.R.A.Q.T." and "Galang" were the biggest crowd pleasers that triggered a slew of people to rush on stage, by request from M.I.A. herself. After she accepted an unexpected kiss from a fan and two encores, the results were satisfying: clothes were drenched in sweat and feet were numb.
"I definitely had fun, but I thought the audience was tame and the set could have been a little longer," Genevieve Ramos, a junior in School of Communication, said. "Next time, I'll be one of those people dancing on stage."
M.I.A. will be opening for Gwen Stefani during her North American Tour in November.
