M.I.A. - Boyz

What this video is

Released June 2007 as the lead single from M.I.A.'s second album Kala (XL Recordings/Interscope), 'Boyz' arrived at a pivotal moment in global bass culture. Recorded across multiple countries during a period when M.I.A. was denied a US work visa, the song and video embody a transnational, anti-establishment aesthetic fusing Jamaican dancehall, Tamil gaana, West Indian soca, and UK underground electronics. Shot on…

Why it matters

A landmark in the global bass and diaspora-pop lineage, 'Boyz' demonstrated that non-Western musical traditions — specifically Tamil gaana and Jamaican dancehall — could be synthesized into internationally charting pop with full aesthetic integrity intact. Ranked #9 on Rolling Stone's 100 Best…

The director

Jason 'Jay Will' Williams is a Jamaica-based music video director. M.I.A. (Maya Arulpragasam) is the recording artist, born in London and of Sri Lankan Tamil descent, who co-directed this video. The collaboration brought together Williams's on-the-ground…