M.I.A.

Artist Image: M.I.A.
Attribution
Image Credit: Interscope Records (Interscope Records), CC BY-SA 4.0

Biography

Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam (born 18 July 1975), better known by her stage name M.I.A., is an English recording artist, songwriter, painter and director. The moniker "M.I.A." is both a play on her own name and a reference to the abbreviation for Missing in Action. Her compositions combine elements of electronic, dance, alternative, hip hop and world music.

Details

Item Name Item Details
Year Formed 2001
Number of Albums 27
Record Label
Website www.miauk.com
Wikipedia M.I.A. on Wikipedia
Social Networks

Trivia

What was Maya's real name?

Maya Arulpragasam

...M.I.A., byname of Maya Arulpragasam , (born July 18, 1975, London, England), Britishborn Sri Lankan rapper who achieved global fame with politically ch...
When was Mayara Arulgasam born?

London, England

...M.I.A., byname of Maya Arulpragasam, (born July 18, 1975, London, England ), Britishborn Sri Lankan rapper who achieved global fame with politically ch...
Where did Arulpasam spend most of her childhood?

northern Sri Lanka

...ulpragasam was born in London, she spent much of her childhood in northern Sri Lanka . When the civil war between the Tamil minority in the north and t...
Where did Arulpragasam study?

visual arts

...Sri Lanka, eventually returning to London. There Arulpragasam studied visual arts , often creating works that were influenced by the conflict she had w...
For what British pop punk group did she work as a graphic designer?

Elastica

... music industry as the graphic designer for the British pop punk group Elastica , and she familiarized herself with the recording equipment used by dan...
What was the name of the mixtape that M.I.A. released in 2004?

Piracy Funds Terrorism

...fulllength album intensified among her fans with the release of Piracy Funds Terrorism , a 2004 mixtape produced with American producer Diplo. Although...
What was the name of M.I.A.'s 2005 debut album?

Arular

...release was still greeted with much critical interest. The album title, Arular , was the name her father adopted while a Tamil Tiger, and the album cov...
What lent a new gravity to the dance music genre?

M.I.A.s politics

...he club circuit, based on the strength of singles such as Galang and Bucky Done Gun, and M.I.A.s politics lent a new gravity to the dance music genre....
Where did she move to in 1986?

London

...sits from her father. In 1986, she was moved again, this time around to London as a refugee along with her family. During this period of time, she sta...
What language did she learn during this time?

English

...along with her family. During this period of time, she started learning English and then enrolled to Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, ...
What type of art did M.I.A. display after graduating from college?

graffiti art

...film, and video. After graduating from college, M.I.A. She displayed graffiti art and spraypaint canvasses mixing Tamil political street art with imag...
Who bought one of M.I.A.'s paintings?

Jude Law

...ges of London life and consumerist culture. One of her works impressed Jude Law who then bought it. On top of that, the exhibition was nominated for t...
What kind of connection to music made her know and learn how to make it herself?

close

...native Turner Prize. Following the success of her exhibition, M.I.A. Her close connection to music made her know and learn how to make it herself. She...
How did she feel as a child?

displacement

...ndon to Sri Lankan Tamil parents, M.I.A. As a child, she experienced displacement caused by the Sri Lankan Civil War, which made the family return to ...
When did she begin her recording career?

2002

...rtist, filmmaker and designer in 2000, and began her recording career in 2002 . One of the first acts to come to public attention through the Internet,...
What was the cause of the displacement?

Sri Lankan Civil War

...s, M.I.A. As a child, she experienced displacement caused by the Sri Lankan Civil War , which made the family return to London as refugees when M.I.A. ...
How old was Maya Arulpragasam when she moved from London, England to Sri Lanka?

six months

... from London, England, to her parents' native Sri Lanka at the age of six months , only to relocate to Madras, India. During a return stay in Sri Lanka...
Where did Maya move to when she was six months old?

Sri Lanka

...mber of places. She moved from London, England, to her parents' native Sri Lanka at the age of six months, only to relocate to Madras, India. During a...
In what city did Arul Pragasam move to after moving to India?

Madras

...parents' native Sri Lanka at the age of six months, only to relocate to Madras , India. During a return stay in Sri Lanka, the civil war taking place w...
What was the name of the song that Galang was released under?

M.I.A.,

...song that was then pressed into 500 copies and released, under the name M.I.A., by the Showbiz label. It didn't take long for the song a bold, righteo...
How many copies was Galang pressed into?

500

... demo; they made adjustments to Galang, a song that was then pressed into 500 copies and released, under the name M.I.A., by the Showbiz label. It did...
What label did she sign a contract with?

XL

...ile funk to make an impact with DJs. She wound up signing a contract with XL , which rereleased the single and, eventually, her debut album Arular in 2...
What is Mathangi Maya Arulpragasam's stage name?

M.I.A

...gi Maya Arulpragasam (born 18 July 1975), better known by her stage name M.I.A . (pronounced as distinct initials), is a British Sri Lankan rapper, sin...
Who is a British Sri Lankan rapper, singersongwriter, record producer and activist?

Mathangi Maya Arulpragasam

...Edit Overview (4) Mini Bio (1) Mathangi Maya Arulpragasam (born 18 July 1975), better known by her stage name M.I.A. (pronounced as distinct initials)...
What was Arular's debut album?

2005

...ctronic, hip hop and world music. She released her debut album Arular in 2005 and her second album Kala in 2007, both to wide critical acclaim. Arular...
What was Kala certified as in the UK?

silver

...nd number three on the DanceElectronic Albums chart. Kala was certified silver in the UK and gold in Canada and the US, where it topped the DanceElect...
Which single peaked in the Top 20 worldwide?

Paper Planes

...Sales in 2007, becoming her first Top 10 charting single. Her single Paper Planes peaked in the Top 20 worldwide and reached number four on the Billbo...
How many times platinum was Paper Planes in Canada and the US?

three

...he Billboard Hot 100. Paper Planes was certified gold in New Zealand and three times platinum in Canada and the US where, as of November 2011, it was ...
What was Arul Pragasam's father's occupation?

engineer

... born on July 18, 1975, in Hounslow, West London, to Arul Pragasam, an engineer , writer and activist, and Kala, a seamstress. She has a brother Sugu. ...
What genre of music did she first hear at her neighbors places in the 1980s?

hiphop

... heard at her neighbors places in the 1980s were her first exposures to hiphop music due to which she developed an interest in hiphop and dancehall. I...
When did she start attending a primary school in southwest London?

1986

...ancehall. In southwest London, she started attending a primary school in 1986 . She completed a degree in fine art, film, and video in 2000 with a scho...
In what year did she complete a degree in fine art, film and video?

2000

...y school in 1986. She completed a degree in fine art, film, and video in 2000 with a scholarship from London's Central Saint Martins College of Art an...
Where was Maya born?

Hounslow, London

...Maya was born in Hounslow, London but spent little time there as, at only 6 months old, her parents moved the family back to their native Sri Lanka. I...
What was the name of Maya's father who sent tickets for them to relocate to?

Madras in India

...ay in Sri Lanka, so her father sent tickets for them to relocate to Madras in India . Maya's mother moved with the three children into an almost dereli...
How far away was Maya's house from the nearest road or neighbor?

3 miles

...a's mother moved with the three children into an almost derelict house, 3 miles from the nearest road or neighbor. They scraped by for a while, with s...
When did Sri Lanka civil war break out?

1983

... Lanka where they lived until the breakout of the Sri Lanka civil war in 1983 . Following the outbreak of that war, the family (without M.I.A dad) relo...
Where did the Sri Lankan family relocate after the civil war?

India

...ng the outbreak of that war, the family (without M.I.A dad) relocated to India . The Emcee was six at the time and the family stayed in India for about...
How old was M.I.A when they relocated to India?

six

...hat war, the family (without M.I.A dad) relocated to India. The Emcee was six at the time and the family stayed in India for about five years before t...
Where did she attend?

Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design

...ry good in freehand drawing and as such, she attended the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design where she studied fine art, film, and video....
What was Mathangi Arulpragasam's birth name?

Mathangi Arulpragasam

...Personal Background Born in London, England on July 18, 1975, as Mathangi Arulpragasam to parents Kala and Arul, she was fondly called Maya. Her famil...
Who were Mathangis parents?

Kala and Arul

...ondon, England on July 18, 1975, as Mathangi Arulpragasam to parents Kala and Arul , she was fondly called Maya. Her family relocated just six months a...
Where did she spend her formative years?

Phipps Bridge Estate

...able to go back to London where she spent her formative years in Phipps Bridge Estate which was located in the southwest of London. She learned to spe...
Where is Ricards Lodge High School located?

Wimbledon

... finished high school at Ricards Lodge High School which is located in Wimbledon . An Artist in Every Sense of the Word When Maya was in university ear...
Where was Maya's high school?

Ricards Lodge High School

...rned to speak the English language and finished high school at Ricards Lodge High School which is located in Wimbledon. An Artist in Every Sense of th...
What did Maya want to make art that represented?

people and society

...rsity earning her degree, she wanted to make art that represented people and society . In later interviews, she stated that Spike Jonze, Harmony Korine...
What artists inspired Maya?

Spike Jonze, Harmony Korine, and Dogme 95

...ople and society. In later interviews, she stated that Spike Jonze, Harmony Korine, and Dogme 95 inspired her in line with film. It was also in the un...
Who was a significant person for Maya's discovery?

Justine Frischmann

...r in line with film. It was also in the university where Maya met Justine Frischmann , a significant person for her discovery. Frischmann is the vocali...
Who was approached to work on a film in Los Angeles?

John Singleton

...een known to purchase some of her early work. She was approached by John Singleton to work on a film in Los Angeles. Her song 'Paper Planes' was featu...