Tucked away in an interview that M.I.A. did with Pitchfork last month about her out-of-nowhere pregnancy was a tidbit that caused at least one A.V. Clubber's head (okay, mine) to nearly explode: an impending collaboration with Blaqstarr on the Tom Waits classic "Way Down In The Hole," also known as the theme song to The Wire, thus combining two of the best things to exist, ever. Then, as if today didn't already have enough awesomeness going for it (potentially, hopefully, you voted, right?), it just showed up over on Idolator.
It's just another bullet point on the rapidly expanding résumé of the Sri Lankan rapper (who's rapidly expanding herself–her first baby is due very soon) following her supposed "retirement" this past June. After the unexpected radio success of "Paper Planes," which neared the top of both the Billboard and iTunes singles charts thanks to its inclusion in the trailer for Pineapple Express, M.I.A. has become a hot commodity in the hip-hop collaboration world: "Swagga Like Us," featuring Jay-Z, Kanye West, T.I., and Lil' Wayne, has already piggybacked on a "Paper Planes" sample to the top of the singles charts. Another Jay-Z/M.I.A. collabo–a remix of "Boyz," from last year's much-loved Kala–drops today as part of the How Many Votes Fix Mix digital EP (available on iTunes). Oh yeah, she also just signed Baltimore rapper Rye Rye to her record label N.E.E.T., launched a clothing line, and opened a school in Liberia. What was that about retirement?