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M.I.A. Claims the Grammys Stole Her Stage Ideas

Singer says Bob Marley tribute was taken from her live show

M.I.A. in Hollywood, California.
John Sciulli/Getty Images
February 20, 2013 4:10 PM ET

M.I.A. has a bone to pick with the Recording Academy: the singer claims that the Grammys stole her ideas and art direction from her live show for the ceremony's Bob Marley tribute. The apparently beleaguered M.I.A. took to Twitter to rally fans around a "steal log," and added, "M.I.A. $500: Grammys $5000000." She then posted two images of the performances in question side-by-side on her Tumblr with the headline "M.I.A. VS THE SYSTEM." Her footage is taken from a concert last month in Australia.

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"My ideas came from my life," wrote M.I.A. "My set was based on Tamil Hindu temple. Not Bob Marley." She also added, "If u wanna see the real thing or get it first, come to a M.I.A. show!" The Grammys' Bob Marley tribute featured Marley's sons Damian and Ziggy along with Sting, Bruno Mars and Rihanna. Clips of both performances are below.

M.I.A.'s noise comes with good timing: she's set to release her long-awaited fourth album, Matangi, in April.

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