i got digital cash Hactivism at its best Google Bombing with my Infotainment—
Dear Lord. With this—and many other similarly Palin-esque tweets (“go egosurfing DRINK A SHOT OF TEQUILLA spamouflaged in brandalism” is another prime example)—my entire opinion of MIA has changed in, like, less than a day. This #MIAP4k Pitchfork guest tweeter thing is nothing but an unmitigated disaster, as professional political poseur MIA apparently slams her head down on her keyboard to produce a torrent of vapid political t-shirt-level sloganeering. Maybe that’s her thing. Maybe bringing up actual issues that affect human beings is too real for her or something. Maybe she’s speaking out about the blandishment that is our political discourse through her own banal megaphone wielding. After all, she’s been glossing over the Tamil Tiger thing for years. I don’t know, but never before has my opinion of one artist changed so rapidly. I feel an internal backlash growing. I was okay with her yelping over a Suicide song (not so much upon further reflection). And then today comes another IMPORTANT MESSAGE MINI-MOVIE music video, directed by the son of a famous political director, no less.
Thing is, I’ve been willing to overlook her facile political nothingness in the face of music that I thought was pretty great, and I groused at the accusation that she was just another pretty face propped up by more talented male collaborators (see also: Nico, Marianne Faithfull, Linda Ronstadt…why are all my examples here so old?!). And yet she chooses, through the songs and this “OMG NSFW YOU GUYS” video, to make ill-defined non-politics her raison d’être. I’m starting to think the early critics were right. By launching this video salvo against…something…she has pushed herself further out there as an ersatz political artist, so I think it’s fair to critique her posturing. Maybe she’s all up in some super-meta critique of our idiotic political discourse, but I think we have enough real world examples of that to go around (see also: Sarah Palin’s Twitter account). How about this, MIA? Instead of practicing designer politics, use your not-inconsiderable success and influence to affect real change for real oppressed people.
But, then again, what do I know? I’m not the genius who wrote this: “i got a ten dollar solution SO IM STEPPIN UP coz THERE’S SPACE FOR OL DAT I SEE #miap4k”
—Lucas
(via chainofknives)
