When it comes to M.I.A., we expect a certain degree of controversy. After all, the singer is no stranger to releasing songs and videos packaged with a message. So when her "XXXO" video hit the Net on Wednesday (August 11), we were understandably surprised.

The clip for "XXXO," which, as the title implies, is about being in love (although not necessarily happily), is a marked departure from her "Born Free" video. While [article id="1642107"]"Born Free" set off a firestorm of criticism[/article] for its violence, "XXXO" is much tamer in nature and much more hypnotic in style.

M.I.A. is front and center in the video, which has an '80s feel and relies heavily on graphics of hearts and flowers. In fact, the video appears to put M.I.A. inside a digital greeting card -- although her look in the video is much more seductive, as she wears her hair loose and wavy and packs on the thick red lipstick. Of course, the video is not completely without political symbolism. The artist, who previously showed her support for the Tamil Tigers with her song "Paper Planes," also features two tigers.

While the video for "XXXO" only premiered Wednesday, M.I.A.'s fans are likely already familiar with the song. A [article id="1641333"]remix of the song featuring Jay-Z[/article] was released back in June, and the artist herself put out the original track (along with [article id="1643152"]the rest of her album[/article]) on her MySpace page in July.

Have you seen the "XXXO" clip? What do you think of it? Let us know in the comments!