M.I.A. (Maya Arulpragasam)
Article ToolsPrintEmailSphereAddThisRSSYahoo! Buzz AGE: 31
OCCUPATION: Rapper, singer- songwriter, artist
NUMBER OF TIME COVERS: 0
PREVIOUS APPEARANCES ON THE TIME 100: 0

PRO: Even if you`ve never heard of the genre-blending bhangra- and reggae-influenced rapper, her Sri Lankan refugee backstory or her new hit album, Kala, you`ve probably heard `Paper Planes,` her intense and infectious single: it`s the one with the rhythmic gunshot chorus. (Bang, bang, bang, bang...click, ka-ching!)

ALSO IN TODAYS GUARDIAN UK

`I was chosen to deliver the explosion`

With bezzie mates MIA and Mark Ronson on speed-dial, plus props from Kanye and Diplo, Santogold is a noughties pop icon in waiting, says Lauren Cochrane

Saturday May 3, 2008
The Guardian

* Mark Ronson & Amy Whine house are to sing for the next Bond Film