Oh, M.I.A.. She may not sell as many albums, but she’s essentially the “interesting” pop star amongst a generation of artists like Britney Spears and Lady GaGa. She’s kind of like the Kanye West of pop (if I can declare her music that, certainly there are objections), managing to release material that is interesting musically while retaining accessibility, allowing for hits as big as “Paper Planes.”
However, of the two’s latest singles, Mr. West’s is certainly the more adventurous – she isn’t taking any risks here. She’s received a decent amount of attention for her insults lately, taking shots at pop stars from Lady GaGa herself to Justin Bieber (who’s that really going to offend?). Yet, her jabs at GaGa seem a bit contradictory after this track, as there isn’t much going on here.
To be fair, the song is reasonably successful. It’s not entirely boring, and it’ll likely receive attention on the airwaves. She mostly chants amongst synths, “You want me to be someone who I’m really not.” That more or less wraps up the ideas presented on the song. The line, “You’re treatin’ me like tweety bird on your iPhone” is nearly grating, but aside from that, the song is neither compelling nor too bland. It’s a fun listen, and likely represents a better album – it is the single, after all.
