M.I.A.
M.I.A. is a British Tamil rapper, producer and visual artist whose music brings electronic beats, hip-hop and sounds from around the world into songs about identity, borders and faith.
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Latest
Maya’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus her backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Overview
- Name
- Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam
- Born
- 18 July 1975, London, England
- Roots
- Sri Lankan Tamil; grew up in Sri Lanka and returned to London as a refugee aged 11
- Work
- Rapper, singer, songwriter, producer and visual artist
- First album
- Arular, 2005
- Breakout
- Kala and “Paper Planes,” 2007
Mini bio
From Sri Lanka to London.
Born in London to Sri Lankan Tamil parents, Maya spent much of her childhood in Sri Lanka. Civil war brought her family back to London as refugees when she was 11. Migration and the lives of people caught between countries became recurring subjects in her work.
An artist before a recording career.
She worked across visual art, photography and video before making records. A borrowed Roland MC-505 from Elastica’s Justine Frischmann helped her turn ideas into songs. Early tracks such as “Galang” spread online, and Arular arrived in 2005.
Songs that travelled.
Kala followed in 2007, with “Paper Planes” introducing her to a much wider audience. The song earned a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. Her writing also reached film through “O Saya,” co-written with A.R. Rahman for Slumdog Millionaire and nominated for an Oscar in 2009.
A visual thread.
Her videos are part of the storytelling, from “Bad Girls” to the refugee imagery of “Borders.” Stephen Loveridge’s 2018 documentary MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A. draws on years of her own footage. Her 2026 album M.I.7 brings Christian themes into her music through her independent OhmniMusic label.
Creditschronological, newest first
Music
- 2026M.I.7Recording artist; released through her OhmniMusic label
- 2025SafeArtist, songwriter and co-producer with Christopher James Selfe
- 2008O Saya, Slumdog MillionaireCo-writer of music and lyrics with A.R. Rahman
- 2007KalaRecording artist
- 2005ArularRecording artist
Film and music videos
- 2026EverythingPerformer and visualizer editor
- 2018MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A.Documentary subject; personal archive footage
- 2014Double Bubble TroublePerformer and video director
Awards
- Member of the Order of the British Empire2019 · Appointed MBE for services to music.
- Sundance World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award2018 · Award presented to Stephen Loveridge and M.I.A. for MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A.
- Academy Award nomination2009 · Original Song nominee for “O Saya,” with A.R. Rahman.
- Grammy nomination2009 · Record of the Year nominee for “Paper Planes.”
Quotes
It’s like making a big old marble cake with lots of different countries and influencesM.I.A., XL Recordings
Her description of the mixture of sounds on Kala, quoted on the label’s album page.
Trivia
- She made artwork and built her own website while developing the music that became Arular.
- Before she became known as a musician, she wanted to make documentary films.
- She performed at the 2009 Grammys while nine months pregnant.
- Her mother hand-stitched British honours medals, giving her own MBE a personal family connection.
Find Maya
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