M.I.A.
Photo: Jeff Kravitz/ FilmMagic

With the Beastie Boys out of the picture due to Adam Yauch's cancer, the title of main attraction was up for grabs on the final day of the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in San Francisco.

Tenacious D, Jack Black and Kyle Gass' jokey acoustic metal duo, replaced the Beasties as the main-stage headliner on Sunday night, but it wasn't entirely clear if the majority of people who showed up in Golden Gate Park were there to see the D (even despite the chants of "We want D!" prior to their set). The band appeared to have a sense of humor about its fill-in status, selling a shirt at the festival that spoofed the Beastie Boys' Check Your Head album cover and warned, "Check Your Headliner."

	Inside San Fran's Outside Lands Festival

Audience members particularly fond of phallus and Satan jokes — or maybe just the ones who saw Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny — would probably go ahead and give the "main attraction" honor to the headliners, who were playing two days after Black's 40th birthday. In addition to performing songs like "Tribute," "Wonderboy" and "F--- Her Gently," the duo (which had an ace backing band behind them) acted out several skits, including one that played on Black's recent milestone and featured a stunt double doing flips and cartwheels. (Gass then temporarily quit the band when Black wouldn't admit to the crowd that he wasn't actually responsible for the athletic feats.) Black's best stunt of the night was all his own, however, when he closed the night by stripping down to his underwear and throwing his shirt and pants into the audience.

A few vocal audience members during Band of Horses' set at the nearby Sutro stage definitely gave their votes to frontman Ben Bridwell and company, offering up chants of "Main stage! Main stage!" during the hourlong set. The group's countrified indie rock was downright explosive, and Bridwell seemed to be just as impressed with the performance as his fans were. Sporting lots of hair and beards, the South Carolina outfit tore through an excellent selection of songs from 2006's Everything All the Time — including Outside Lands' unofficial theme song, "Weed Party" — and 2007's Cease to Begin, as well as a cover of Gram Parsons' "A Song for You."

Plenty of fans of would have also awarded the highlight crown to the Dead Weather, Jack White's stunningly cool quartet that also includes singer Alison Mosshart from the Kills. Buoyed by White's muscular guitar-playing and a crack set of tunes from their recently released debut, Horehound, the band tore through their set with reckless abandon while still looking cool. It helped that even though they played in the middle of the afternoon, the cloud cover and slight chill from the Bay breeze turned the festival's second-largest stage into a dangerous after-hours juke joint. The climax had little to do with the songs, as the group took a brief moment to jam while Mosshart sultrily smoked a cigarette sitting on the side of the stage. Nobody indulged in a vice with more rock and roll swagger better all weekend than the Dead Weather's singer.

Speaking of swagger, M.I.A. had a convincing campaign judging from the bodies convulsing during her bass-heavy workout on the main stage. Modest Mouse had a much harder sell earlier in the day, when they delivered a set that leaned closer to band favorites rather than fan favorites and included almost no banter from enigmatic leader Isaac Brock. It's a formula that Modest Mouse has used in the past in festival settings, but it's difficult to tell if the band is being contrarian or if adamantly playing by its own rules is a survival technique. Either way, it meant that megahit "Float On" was nowhere to be found, though songs like "The View," "Dramamine" and "Paper Thin Walls" sounded good on the big speakers.

It's safe to assume nobody shelled out a hundred bucks just to see Matt & Kim play the Panhandle stage at 3 in the afternoon, but the Brooklyn duo certainly performed as if most of the people watching them did. With beach balls and audience members bouncing, Matt Johnson and Kim Schifino spent most of their 40 minutes smiling and blasting through their keys-and-drums songs, slowing down only to explain why drummers shouldn't wear big earrings and asking the sun to come out so their solar-powered stage wouldn't run out of juice. Schifino even crowd-surfed before she and Johnson closed their set with a low-fi cover of Europe's "The Final Countdown" and their own "Daylight," which recently received some good airtime thanks to Bacardi.

In addition to the music, the second-annual Outside Lands — which is produced in part by Superfly Productions, the same folks behind Bonnaroo — offered plenty of other diversions, including a salon, pitching and batting cages, the Today Is So Yesterday Lounge featuring an oxygen bar, and a "Beatles Rock Band" lounge. And it being the Bay area and all, there was a wine tent and food options included heirloom watermelon, soju cocktails and portobello skewers offered by local businesses. All that combined with 72 hours worth of experimental rock, crowd-pleasing pop and euphoric R&B made for three days worth of San Francisco-style bliss.

• Inside San Fran's Outside Lands Festival

• M.I.A.
• Tenacious D
• Beastie Boys
• The Dead Weather

M.I.A. performs in L.A. on Wednesday
Photo: Jeff Tovar/www.mediacontender.com

LOS ANGELES — She might not be nominated for any VMAs this year, but M.I.A. is still one of the hardest-working female artists in the music biz. After her swaggering performance with Jay-Z, Kanye, Lil Wayne and T.I. at the Grammy Awards in February, M.I.A. has since had a baby boy, headlined the massive Coachella Music Festival, broke her first signed artist, Rye Rye, into the scene on her brand-new indie label, N.E.E.T., and is also rumored to be writing tracks for Christina Aguilera's upcoming album.

And as if it weren't enough to headline two major West Coast festivals this week — Street Scene in San Diego and Outside Lands in San Francisco — M.I.A. somehow found time to do a semi-secret show at a warehouse in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday night for 500 eager fans who scurried to buy tickets only days prior.

Local promoters' last-minute Facebook and Twitter blasts were the only advance notice fans received about the show, yet tickets still sold out within three hours of going on sale Monday. As showtime neared, the line wrapped around the block of the venue, but fans waited patiently to see their favorite Sri Lankan rapper up close and personal.

M.I.A. came out as stylish as ever, with her signature sunglasses and a white, one-piece leotard with a huge smiley face painted across the butt. She ran through popular songs off both her albums, including "Boyz," "10 Dolla" and of course, last year's summer jam, "Paper Planes." In between songs, her DJ would throw in new bass-thumping beats, but M.I.A. merely teased the audience with hints of new tracks.

"I was gonna play a new song, but I decided not to," M.I.A. called out toward the end of her set. The crowd did not seem to mind, though, as they jumped and pumped fists to each of her popular anthems.

"I really just want to throw out money and buy everyone a drink," she said as she finished her set. Cash never actually made it to the crowd and no rounds were bought, but the show ended with happy fans just satisfied to see her in a small, intimate venue versus the large festivals she has most recently been conquering. But the question remains whether she'll break out a new track or two at one of this weekend's huge gigs.

• M.I.A.

Christina Aguilera
Photo: Denise Truscello/ WireImage

Christina Aguilera is doing anything but getting back to basics on her new music. The singer called in to her station on A.P.E. Radio earlier this week and dished a bit about her forthcoming album, noting that she hit the studio with a wide range of artists to experiment on her sound.

"I know I can't let too much out the bag too soon," she said. "I just can't, 'cause I really want you guys to be surprised and to experience firsthand what I'm talking about or what I'm not talking too much about. Too soon in the game, but wrapping everything up now."

Aguilera noted that she's "in the final stages of the record, and I'm just so thrilled." She stepped out of her comfort zone to make a unique album, working with M.I.A., Santigold and Lady Tron, who she says she "respects and admires."

"I think I'm most proud of this work than I've ever been, just because I worked with so many amazing and incredibly talented people," she said. "[Sia and I] did a lot of work on this record together, and she's just a complete gem. She's truly just such a talented force to be reckoned with. And I so enjoyed her company, and I think we really created some super crazy magic together. I got a chance to sort of write with Santigold, M.I.A., Lady Tron — artists that I really love."

The album's sound, and presumably Aguilera's look to go along with it, will reflect the eclectic vibe that she's striving for on the album. "The overall versatility of this record is truly something special for me," she explained. "I experimented with so many different types of textures and sounds with my voice that I've never showcased and that I never really knew that I could do."

She added that "working with so many different people, I really kind of wanted to step into their worlds, them into my world and just get the best of both worlds."

"I really like to step outside of my own box," she said. "The result was just crazy magic. There truly is something for everyone to enjoy on the record. Lots of good stuff in store!"

• Christina Aguilera
• Santigold
• M.I.A.

M.I.A.
Photo: MTV News

When M.I.A. (a.k.a. Maya Arulpragasam) entered the scene back in 2004, her colorful Sri Lankan backstory was part of what made her such an alluring phenomenon. Her fiery, politically provocative lyrics (referencing tanks and bombs), her performance outfits and her artwork were all born of an environment rarely seen in entertainment, let alone hip-hop.

M.I.A. grew up a Tamil (a minority ethnic group) in Sri Lanka, an island nation entrenched in a quarter-century war between the majority Sinhala government and separatists (mainly the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or LTTE) seeking to carve out a Tamil homeland. Her father, for whom her first album Arular is named, was a Tamil militant sympathizer, who was sometimes on the run.

Despite her family history, M.I.A. says that she has always fought in the name of the defenseless civilians who are caught in the middle of the war. "It's a humanitarian situation," she told MTV News. "It's not about, 'Do you support the government, or do you support the Tigers?' which I think everyone is making this whole thing into, and has made it into for the past 30 years."

When we recently caught up with the rapper, she was on the set of the video for "Bang," the new single from her newly formed N.E.E.T. label's debut artist Rye Rye. And it just so happened that that day, the U.S. government had joined the international community in calling for a ceasefire in her home country. As of late the balance in the Sri Lankan government's campaign against the Tamil separatist army has tipped tremendously in their favor: They've pushed the rebel army to a tiny stretch of land at the north of the island, most fear at a heavy humanitarian cost. Refugees pouring out of the battle zone number in the hundreds of thousands and aid agencies estimate that 50,000-100,000 civilians remain trapped in the war zone. Each side claims that the other is using civilians as tactical shields.

"America has stepped up and requested the ceasefire, so it's gonna be interesting to see what happens now," she said. "That's what we've got to see happen in the future — that those people are getting looked after and that those people are getting heard. When I speak about these things, it's for those people in the middle. And it's not for anyone else. I just want to be really clear about that."

Thus far, all international calls for a ceasefire — from France, Britain, the United States and the United Nations — have fallen on deaf ears, with Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa demanding an unequivocal surrender of rebel forces. All independent journalists have been barred from the country. Still, for the trapped civilians, M.I.A. maintains a glimmer of hope.

"My fingers are crossed. We'll wait and see what happens. Hopefully, there is a solution."

• M.I.A.

M.I.A.
Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images

According to a birth certificate obtained by TMZ, M.I.A's baby's name has been revealed. And as M.I.A. assured the world on her MySpace blog earlier this month, the baby's name isn't Ickitt — instead it is Ikhyd Edgar Arular Bronfman.

The baby's father is musician Benjamin Bronfman, who has also gone by the name Benjamin Brewer; his father's name is Edgar Bronfman Jr. (Edgar Bronfman Jr. also happens to be CEO of Warner Music Group.) The child's second middle name comes from M.I.A.'s father: Arular was his political code name during his involvement with the Tamil Tigers political group in Sri Lanka, and is also the name of M.I.A.'s first album.

TMZ also points out that on the birth certificate, M.I.A.'s date of birth is July 18, 1975, making her 33, instead of her often-reported age of 31.

At press time, M.I.A.'s had not responded to MTV News' requests for confirmation.

When rumors began to spread earlier this month that the baby boy's name was Ickitt, M.I.A. took to her blog on March 6 to clear them up. "My baby is not called Ickitt, Pickit or Lickit thank you very much to all the Hollywood press," she wrote. "He's a baby, he don't need press! I didn't release the baby name because I didn't think it was news!!!!"

She went on to joke about unusual celebrity baby names of late. She wrote, "But I will be back with something newsworthy soon, till then go pick on Apple, Satchel and Moon Unit." The boy is M.I.A.'s (real name: Mathangi Arulpragasam) first child.

The singer's pregnancy was the source of much speculation before the Grammys, as the day of the show was her due date. However, she performed "Swagga Like Us" with Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, T.I. and Kanye West without incident. The singer earned an Oscar nod for her work on "Slumdog Millionaire."

Ikhyd was born on February 11 in Los Angeles.

• MTV News' Headlines Of The Day

• M.I.A.
• Kanye West
• Lil Wayne
• T.I.
• Jay-Z

M.I.A.
Photo: Jeff Vespa/WireImage

Despite many media reports claiming that she'd named her son Ickitt, M.I.A. took to her MySpace page Friday (March 6) to say it ain't so.

In an all-caps post titled "Baby name!," she wrote:

"My baby is not called Ickitt, Pickit or Lickit thank you very much to all the Hollywood press. He's a baby, he don't need press!

"I didn't release the baby name because I didn't think it was news!!!!

"But I will be back with something newsworthy soon, till then go pick on Apple, Satchel and Moon Unit.

"Lots of love stickit!!"

M.I.A. was referring to the long list of unusual celebrity baby names in recent years (although Moon Unit is the name of the late Frank Zappa's daughter, now 41).

The boy is M.I.A.'s first child; the father is musician Benjamin Bronfman, who has also gone by the name Benjamin Brewer.

New York's Daily News contacted several South Asian writers and scholars for illumination on the significance of the name "Ickitt," to little avail.

K.T. Rajasingham, editor of the online publication the Asian Tribune, told the paper it is not a Tamil name. A New York member of the South Asian Journalists Association said that in classical Tamil, the word "Ickattu" means "tough" or "inextricable," but he had no translation for "Ickitt."

Neha Kumar, an Indian student at the University of Michigan Center for South Asian studies, told the paper the word "ickitt" functions as a command that means "to keep." But another Tamil speaker said he'd never heard the word, adding "I'd guess she just made up a name she liked."

M.I.A.'s given name is Mathangi Arulpragasam.

The singer's pregnancy was the source of much speculation before the Grammys, as the day of the show was her due date. However, she performed "Swagga Like Us" with Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, T.I. and Kanye West without incident. The singer earned an Oscar nod for her work on "Slumdog Millionaire."

• M.I.A.

M.I.A.
Photo: Theo Wargo/ WireImage

According to a post on her MySpace celebrity page, M.I.A. gave birth to a baby boy on Wednesday in Los Angeles. It is M.I.A.'s first child; the father, musician Benjamin Bronfman, said mom and baby are "beautiful and doing well," according to M.I.A.'s label rep.

"To fans friends on family. My baby is here — happy valentines!" M.I.A.'s post reads.

"Sunday nite I came home from the still in the mood to party, I coulda easily gone out but I went home instead, lucky i did!! Coz my early stage labour kicked in around 2 a.m.," the post continues.

"My baby was born Wednesday, he is healthy, fine, beautiful and the most amazing thing ever on this planet, of course I'm his mum!!!

"Me and baby are putting our tour dates for 2010 together, and making mixtapes, and figuring out a way to break out of the hospital!"

"Hopefully the world is been ticking along and i ain't missed much!" the post concludes.

M.I.A.'s pregnancy was the source of much speculation before the Grammys, as the day of the show was her due date. However, she performed "Swagga Like Us" with Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, T.I. and Kanye West without incident.

She is scheduled to perform at the Oscars on Sunday, February 22, where she is nominated for her contribution to the "Slumdog Millionaire" soundtrack.

• M.I.A.

M.I.A.
Photo: Gabriel Bouys/ Getty Images

Before a very pregnant M.I.A. graced the stage at the Grammy Awards on Sunday (February 8), she told us her baby was poised to be a hip-hop star. That makes sense, because he's already hit the stage with Jay-Z, Kanye West, T.I. and Lil Wayne (not to mention his MC mom) for their "Swagga Like Us" performance.

"He's getting ready for Jay-Z and Lil Wayne. So far, so good," she said on the Grammy red carpet. "I just don't know what labor is. It's my first baby. So I'm not walking around going, 'Maybe this is it.' The baby is just moving around, getting his swagga on."

On top of her performance, the mom-to-be was up for Record of the Year for her hit "Paper Planes" but lost out to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. She still has a chance to win at the Oscars for her contribution to the "Slumdog Millionaire" soundtrack.

"I don't know about the dance sequence," she told MTV News of the flick. "I told ['Slumdog' director] Danny [Boyle] to lose it."

She thought the dance took away from the "gritty stuff," which was what the rapper most related to. "I told him, 'Don't make it too Bollywood. Don't give in.' I like all the gritty stuff in the beginning, 'cause that's kind of what I identify with, 'cause I lived in India. For me, it was more identifiable.

" 'Slumdog' is just amazing," she added. "I didn't expect it to be as well-received as it became."

Will Lil Wayne grab all the gramophones? Is Katy Perry going to tell her girl rivals to kiss off? Can Coldplay march off with a win? MTV News is all over the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, so stay tuned for interviews, analysis and more before, during and after the big night.

• The Grammys Red Carpet

• 2009 Grammy Awards Show
• Stars Rock The 2009 Grammy Red Carpet

• M.I.A.

T.I., Jay-Z, and Lil Wayne perform during the 51st Annual Grammy Awards
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

M.I.A. is a G! Let's never question her standing in hip-hop. She was due to have a baby on Sunday (February 8), and she got onstage at the Grammys, belly and all, and performed in a sheer outfit. The singer more than hung with the big dawgs — Jay-Z, Kanye West, T.I. and Lil Wayne — during their performance of "Swagga Like Us."

Queen Latifah introduced the group as the "Rap Pack," and the whole house stood up as all five were revealed for their historic performance. T.I. had a different name for the collective when we talked to him on the red carpet: "The Swagg Pack."

All fresh, all in black tuxedos, all with distinctive swag, the gang came together for their first-ever performance.

M.I.A. kicked off the set, which was modeled after a 1950s performance in the main showroom of Las Vegas' Sands Hotel. She sang a little of "Paper Planes," ending with the vocal that's sampled for the "Swagga" song: "No one on the corner has swagga like us."

The big band was dressed in white, while the pack all wore black. Kanye started off with his well-known opening: "Mr. West is in the building. Swagga on a hundred, thousand ... "

"Trillion!" they all yelled in unison.

All the guys and M.I.A. were in close proximity hyping 'Ye up. Jay-Z was second, and as he gloated about people jockin' his fresh, the ensemble pretended to wipe him down. Obviously, there wasn't a stain on the pristinely dressed crew.

Wayne wore his rocker hat and placed it on M.I.A.'s head when he began to rhyme. The crew strolled like they were on the runway, following Wayne to the front of the stage as he began to rhyme.

T.I. took off his tux jacket when his verse came up. With his bow tie unwound, Tip closed the record.

"You can go see Weezy for the wordplay, Jeezy for the bird play," Tip rapped with Wayne sitting on the steps bobbing and the rest of the crew in tow. "Kanyeezy for diversity and me for controversy/ All my verses picture-perfect, only spittin' certain purpose/ If you ain't living what you kickin' then you worthless."

After the last note, the crowd gave everyone a standing ovation. Maybe they should take that show on the road ...

Will Lil Wayne grab all the gramophones? Is Katy Perry going to tell her girl rivals to kiss off? Can Coldplay march off with a win? MTV News is all over the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, so stay tuned for interviews, analysis and more before, during and after the big night.

• Grammy Awards 2009: Hottest Moments

• 2009 Grammy Awards Show
• 2009 Grammy Weekend Parties

• M.I.A.
• Lil Wayne
• Jay-Z
• Kanye West
• T.I.

Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift arrive to the 51st Annual Grammy Awards
Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage

The 2009 Grammy Awards saw everything from a pregnant rapper to matching pop stars to a James Bond-channeling boy band. There were a few rock bands who opted to go chic instead of grungy, and, of course, there were the mistakes of the night.

Here, we examine the good, the bad and the "what was that person thinking?" from the 2009 Grammy red carpet. (For a by-the-minute recap of the fabulous and faulty fashions, check out our Grammy red-carpet live blog.)

Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift looked equally sophisticated in their black gowns and diamond drop earrings. It was adorable that the girls, who would later perform together, went for borderline-matching looks on the carpet. Katy Perry looked classy in a pink gown that hearkened back to Madonna's iconic look in the "Material Girl" music video. The members of Death Cab for Cutie and Kings of Leon cleaned up nicely for the show, donning suits and very little facial hair.

(Vote for your favorite Grammy red-carpet look in our poll!.)

The Jonas Brothers, who are known for their fashion choices, went for well-fitted, classic tuxes and looked like one cohesive, swoon-worthy group. Duffy looked age-appropriate, fun and classy in a short black dress and bouffant. Sheryl Crowe looked great in a baby-blue Grecian-style gown.

But, as always, there were some questionable fashion choices. Leona Lewis' dress looked ill-fitting and wasn't flattering to her curvy figure. Paula Abdul's yellow dress should be sent back to the future where it belongs. Jennifer Hudson made her red-carpet entrance with a disappointing dress that looked like it had a bib.

Solange Knowles made another "interesting" fashion choice with her very, very mini yellow dress that looked more like a shirt than a dress. Estelle was going for edgy, but her dress looked stiff and really took away from her awesome makeup ode to Motown. John Mayer was one of the more disappointing men of the evening. He knows how to look elegant, but his outfit Sunday bordered on boring. It was basically just a black jacket and suit pants.

The one woman who left us thinking, "Really?" was M.I.A. We should cut her some slack for showing up on her due date, but there's no excuse for wearing a blue-and-green printed dress that made her look like a globe. For appropriate maternity chic, she should have called Cate Blanchett for advice.

Will Lil Wayne grab all the gramophones? Is Katy Perry going to tell her girl rivals to kiss off? Can Coldplay march off with a win? MTV News is all over the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, so stay tuned for interviews, analysis and more before, during and after the big night.

• Who Will Win At The Grammys?

• Stars Rock The 2009 Grammy Red Carpet
• 2009 Grammy Awards Show

• Miley Cyrus
• Taylor Swift
• Leona Lewis
• M.I.A.
• Katy Perry

Inside San Fran's Outside Lands Festival

• Silversun Pickups
• The Duke Spirit
• Q-Tip
• Thievery Corporation
• Incubus

M.I.A., The Killers, Lupe Fiasco, More At Coachella 2009

• The Killers
• M.I.A.
• Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• Franz Ferdinand
• Public Enemy

Stars Rock The 2009 Grammy Red Carpet

• Miley Cyrus
• Death Cab For Cutie
• My Morning Jacket
• Colby O'Donis
• Taylor Swift

2009 Grammy Awards Show

• Whitney Houston
• Justin Timberlake
• Jennifer Hudson
• U2
• Coldplay

Lindsay Lohan, T.I., M.I.A., More Come Out For Diesel's Rock 'N Roll Circus In NYC

• T.I.
• Lindsay Lohan
• Franz Ferdinand
• Paris Hilton
• Kate Nash

MTV.com Exclusive: M.I.A.

• M.I.A.

Pearl Jam, Amy Winehouse, Lupe Fiasco, M.I.A., More At Lollapalooza 2007

• Pearl Jam
• M.I.A.
• Daft Punk
• Perry Farrell
• Against Me!

MTV.com LIVE: M.I.A. Photos 05.26.2005

• M.I.A.

Highlights From SXSW 2005

• Queens of the Stone Age
• M.I.A.