Greg misses M.I.A.

And no, not because I'm dying for another "Paper Planes". Don't get me wrong, Paper Planes was a good song. It's what put M.I.A. on the map for a lot of people, including myself. Unlike most though, I didn't first hear it in the Pineapple Express trailer, but about half a year earlier, in the fall of 2007. And even then it was one of the remixes. I took it for the gem it was and after a while dived into the rest of her discography only to find it surprisingly pleasing. You can only imagine my dismay when it became the stoner anthem of the summer of '08 thanks to that stupid movie. But I digress.

I guess the reason it made me so bitter was because this new-found audience didn't care to go much deeper. And the thing is, M.I.A. is an artist of depth. Most people probably can't find Sri Lanka on a map, yet they were giddy to sing the chorus of that song. In actuality, much of the content of M.I.A.'s lyrics go straight over the heads of her audience.

That's probably what impresses me the most about her. She's genuinely interesting. Her music is her vehicle to provide her unique perspective on the world. You can't help but be intrigued when somebody who comes from Sri Lanka, a place devastated by a tsunami, names her latest tour the People Vs. Money tour. Thankfully, a third album is on the way so it won't be long before not only will I have something great to listen to, but stoners will have fun getting high to. Hopefully they digest some of the messages in the music in the meantime.