Bubblegum Club

Tag: M.I.A

  • MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A – a documentary about the story behind the star

    MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A – a documentary about the story behind the star

    The documentary MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A was collated from footage taken by Maya Arulpragasm and her closet friends over the past 22 years, documenting her life from an immigrant in London to international stardom. Working with her former art school friend Steve Loveridge to produce the documentary, it gives raw insight into the struggles and joys that culminate into the persona we know as M.I.A. It offers a door into Maya’s thinking about topics related to politics, art, identity and the relationship between these.

    Having fled from the Sri Lankan civil war, Maya travelled first to India and finally settled in the UK with her family, specifically a housing estate in southwest London. This journey, her experiences as an immigrant and refugee living in London make up an important part of how she constructed her identity, as well as influenced her approach to music and performance.

    Viewers will also see how pop and hip hop music filtered into her life, offering a sense of feeling grounded while growing up.

    The documentary presents multiple paces and tones. Moments of pause combined with heightened moments of discomfort, sensitivity, vulnerability and bliss. The viewer is invited into a time capsule to experience the building up of M.I.A as a musician and public figure. However, the most prominent aspects of the documentary share the intimate and delicate details of Maya’s discovery of her personal identity and heritage from her point of view, and the point of view of those closest to her.

    “M.I.A. can read sometimes as a project…but actually when you really step back from it, like the film does, I think there is a logic to it, and a sort of consistency in her vision, all the way through, from a long time before she became a musician, just a quest to represent and nail down her identity, and own the positives and negatives about who she was.” – Steve Loveridge.

    The film will be shown as part of the 20th Encounters South African International Documentary Festival taking place from 31 May – 10 June 2018 in Johannesburg and Cape Town.

  • The performers bringing SA flavour to M.I.A’s shows

    The performers bringing SA flavour to M.I.A’s shows

    M.I.A will be performing for the first time in Africa in Cape Town and Johannesburg on the 7th and 8th of June, and some of South Africa’s best talent will be sharing the stage with her. The selection of DJs and performers bring together sonic and creative experiences that touch on South African genres and their evolution. K-$, Jakinda, and Angel-Ho, will inject SA flavour at the performance in Cape Town, passing the torch to Buli, DJ Doowap, Phatstoki and Dear Ribane the following evening in Johannesburg. I interviewed the supporting artists to find out about their connections to M.I.A’s work and what audiences can expect at the shows.

    This will be the first time Cape Town will get to experience one of Angel-Ho’s live sets. When asked about the connection M.I.A’s fearlessness and determination and their own musical journey, they expressed that, “being fearless is something I grew into, being on stage my whole life, I developed a strong sense of self playing the roles of many characters. The same sensibility and comfort of performing is my greatest strength and I think that speaks to my journey to empower the voiceless.” Buli shared similar sentiments stating that, “I’ve always stayed true to my sound. I’ve never compromised my art for the purpose of trying to appeal to mainstream/commercial crowds. I think that’s the one thing I’ve always taken away from observing M.I.A as an artist. She always stays true to herself and sound; she never tries to compromise her music or herself.”

    K-$ will be kicking off with a 2 hour set, taking the audience on a trip down memory lane, and then increasing momentum for a real jol. Jakinda will draw on his Afro-futurist and industrial sound, while allowing space for experimentation. Phatstoki’s appreciation of feeding off the crowd’s energy will be the guiding premise for the set. As someone who enjoys re-inventing herself through fashion and music, DJ Doowap will be mimicking her brightly coloured hair and striking clothing with bass tunes. Transcendental and futuristic will be the name of the game with Dear Ribane, while Buli brings together a mix of electronic and ambient elements backed up by hip-hop based/inspired drums.

    With fearlessness, determination and an understanding of the connection between music and movement as the thread that is present in the journey’s and work of each performer, these shows are definitely not ones to miss.

  • M.I.A comes to South Africa in June

    M.I.A comes to South Africa in June

    Black Major Selects is partnering with the 20th Encounters South African International Documentary Film Festival to bring M.I.A to South Africa for the first time this June.

    M.I.A fans will be happy to know that the visit includes the screenings of the critically acclaimed documentary MATANGI/MAYA/M.I.A. Following its world premiere at Sundance Film Festival in January, South African audiences will be able to be the first on the continent to engage with the documentary that offers colourful insight into the origins of M.I.A., from her journey as an immigrant teenager in London to becoming a global star. Directed by her former art school friend Steve Loveridge, it includes personal clips shot by M.I.A and her closest friends over the last 22 years. Fans will appreciate this raw, intimate invite into M.I.A’s world.

    In addition to the screenings, M.I.A will have two live shows in Cape Town and Johannesburg on the 7th and 8th of June respectively. She will be teaming up with some of South Africa’s own musical and performance gems. This specially curated selection of South African dancers, artists and DJs radiate the same feeling of fearlessness and presence that Maya Arulpragasm has presented throughout her life. The Cape Town collaborators include Angel-Ho, K-$, and Jakinda. The Johannesburg artists are DJ Doowap, Phatstoki and Dear Ribane. This selection of artists represents various genres and perspectives on performance.

    Tickets and more information for M.I.A.’s live shows are available on the Black Major Selects site.

    Cape Town

    Date: Thursday 7th June 2018

    Venue: Old Biscuit Mill, 375 Albert Road, Woodstock

    Johannesburg

    Date: Friday 8th June 2018

    Venue: Newtown Music Factory, 10 Henry Nxumalo Street, Newtown