“OHMNI W202091” by M.I.A.
On “OHMNI W202091”, M.I.A. makes heavy use of metaphors, many of which are related to science fiction. And the purpose of these allusions are to point to a few general ideas. One is that she is a slappin’ artist, one who is not receiving her deserved attention from others. Another is that she is an exceptional human being not necessarily, on the braggadocious tip but more along the lines of being amongst those who are more enlightened. She also alludes to the idea of this being a peculiar era in human history, as in it being “life changing” in a “strange” way. Then she briefly expounds on how she conducts herself amongst the dangers of the city. And again, all of this is done using references to the likes of fictional characters.
So it’s like “OHMNI W202091” is both serious and not serious at the same time. In other words, the ideas M.I.A. is putting forth are true-to-life. But the wording she uses to convey them illustrate that this is isn’t a confrontational type of rap but rather one whereas she seeks to display the full range of her lyrical skills.
Facts about “OHMNI W202091”
M.I.A. self-released this track via the social-media site Patreon on 22 March 2020.
The release date of this song is 15 years to the day that M.I.A. dropped her first album, “Arular”.
According to a tweet M.I.A. posted on 22 March 2020, apparently the purpose of “OHMNI W202091” is to uplift her fanbase, especially in light of the global coronavirus crisis. Indeed she released the track for free to the listening public.
