M.I.A. accepted that it would be hard to top her 2005 Coachella debut, just before taking the stage at this year's festival. "It still is my landmark show in my career," she tells Spinner. "The day I performed at Coachella 2005, my life changed overnight. Missy Elliott called me the next day and Jimmy Iovine flew in on his jet and signed me. I could have anything I wanted. It was all so insane and it all happened at Coachella. The tent was really full, and they had me come out for an encore. I was like, 'My album hasn't come out. Who the f--- knows my songs?'"

Whether she topped her 2005 set in 2008 depends on the criteria. If sparking a near-riot amongst the crowd is part of that criteria, then color M.I.A. successful. But that achievement doesn't come without a price. "The cops tried to shut [my show] down," she says. "They were on the backside of the stage and they were trying to shut me down, and I was singing, 'Cops don't work, they just make it worse.' I was really thinking about the situation in New York."

The situation M.I.A. refers to is that of Sean Bell, the 23-year-old who was gunned down in a 50-shot round outside a Queens strip club on November 25, 2006. The officers involved in the shooting were acquitted of criminal charges the day before M.I.A.'s Coachella set. The reference wasn't out of character for the Sri-Lankan born artist, whose politically potent lyrics and artwork have gotten her subsequently banned from MTV. She believes that it's now when she and her fans have the most power for change. "Playing that right now in America, during the election times, I feel more and more connected with my fans," she says. "They cheer when s--- happens or boo when they don't agree. It's amazing getting people to be interactive."