M.I.A. furthers her attack on NYT journalist with angry new song

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M.I.A.‘s anger over Sunday’s New York Times magazine profile certainly isn’t hard to find -- the controversial rapper and activist has released a diss track noting her recent conflict with journalist Lynn Hirschberg.

At website N.E.E.T., M.I.A. posted a profanity-laden song called ‘I’m A Singer,’ in which she aurally accuses Hirschberg of being ‘thick’ and says the writer’s story was manipulated to establish M.I.A. as a hypocrite. A recording of the interview also can be heard.

The Times’ profile presents the outspoken British rhymer as something of a dichotomy -- promoting the tragedy of human rights abuse in Sri Lanka in her work but living the high life as the fiance of Ben Bronfman, son of Warner Music chief Edgar Bronfman and an heir to the Seagram’s fortune. Also setting her off: a mention of the singer sampling truffle-flavored French fries during the interview.

Earlier, M.I.A., a.k.a. Maya Arulpragasam, tweeted Hirschberg’s cellphone number and fired off numerous angry missives blasting the validity of the story.

Of the number blasting, Hirschberg responded ‘it’s a fairly unethical thing to do, but I don’t think it’s surprising. She’s a provocateur, and provocateurs want to be provocative.’

What do you think of the track? Tell us in comments.

-- Matt Donnelly

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