The Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack made M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes” world famous, but she still manages to retain her underground mystic (though there may be signs that it is fraying — her former musical partner and ex-boyfriend Diplo says she’s full of hot air). The British singer of Tamil origin creates energetic, eclectic and seemingly politically challenging music that is hard to categorize, drawing from influences as wide apart as hip-hop, punk and electro that she overlays with multilingual slang and killer visuals. Her recent foray into film with the short “Born Free” brought the harrowing subject of genocide to the Youtube generation. M.I.A — aka Maya — is playing just two official shows in Tokyo, but her afterparties are sure to be the talk of the town.
Feb. 11-12
Tickets: ¥ 6,300
Venue: Zepp Tokyo
Nearest station: Aomi (Yurikamome Line) or Tokyo Teleport (Rinkai Line)
