M.I.A. Reflects on Sri Lankan Civil War in New Documentary Trailer

M.I.A. reflects on her creative journey and a childhood defined by the Sri Lankan civil war in the new trailer for Matangi/Maya/M.I.A., the upcoming documentary about the rapper-activist.

“I had to deal with the fact that I was different and I was an immigrant,” M.I.A. recalls. “Music was my medicine. It just blew up so quickly. I lived through war, came as a refugee that is now a pop star. What are the goal posts?”

Director Steve Loveridge traces 22 years of M.I.A.’s (Maya Arulpragasam) life, using previously unseen video recordings to chronicle her immigrating to the U.K. at age 11, her life as a London art-school student, ascent to chart-topping emcee and numerous controversies.

One notable incident addressed in the film is M.I.A. briefly flashing the middle finger on air during her 2012 appearance at the Super Bowl halftime show. The league sued her for $16.6 million in 2014, and the two parties reached an unspecified settlement shortly after.

Matangi/Maya/M.I.A, which hits U.S. theaters on September 28th, premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award.