Bucky Done Gun

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"Bucky Done Gun"
Single by M.I.A.
from the album Arular
B-side"Pull Up the People"
Released11 July 2005 (2005-07-11)
Recorded2004
Genre
Length3:46
LabelXL Recordings
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
M.I.A. singles chronology
"Sunshowers"
(2004) 		"Bucky Done Gun"
(2005) 		"Boyz"
(2007)

"Bucky Done Gun" is the third single from musician

UK Singles Chart
.

"Bucky Done Gun" is an uptempo

rap music. The song was a critical success, with many contemporary critics[who?
] complimenting the tough yet raw themes of revolution and sexuality in the song's music direction and lyrics.

The song's accompanying music video directed by Anthony Mandler was filmed on a desert in Nevada, US. M.I.A. intended for the video to be shot in the favelas in Brazil, but could not shift filming there due to time and budget constraints. The video portrays the singer performing live in an underground nightclub and a desolate wasteland, mixed with scenes of teenagers throwing grenades of smoking colour at buildings. M.I.A and her live backup singer Cherry Byron-Withers provocatively grind against a chain-linked fence and giggling children play in dirty streets and damp landscapes amidst flags of her single artwork. The release of the song and the video's rotation on MTV Brasil marked the first time that a funk carioca-inspired song was played on mainstream radio and music television in Brazil, the genre's country of origin, and contributed towards her rise in popularity there.

M.I.A. performed the song on 3 May 2005 on

NBA Live 06
, renamed and re-edited as "Bucky Done."

Composition

"I don’t know!! (Laughs) I really don’t know. At the time, the concept that I was thinking of was how far we are going to go with gangster culture in rap music. That’s really what I was thinking about. I was thinking about

gangster rap
? Were they going to get into therapy?"

— M.I.A., when asked what "Bucky Done Gun" means by Ashlene Nand.[3]

Music video

The

Mojave desert
.

It features Arulpragasam rapping aggressively against a desolate wasteland with erratic flags bearing her album artwork, erratically interspersed with scenes of her performing live in an underground nightclub, filmed in an artsy, guerrilla style. The video is also mixed with images of teenagers throwing grenades of smoking colour at buildings; Arulpragasam's live backup singer Ms. Cherry provocatively grinding against a chain-linked fence and giggling children playing in dirty streets and damp landscapes.

Cultural impact and use in media

"Bucky Done Gun", as writer W. H. from

political pop pioneer with the release paving the way for bands CSS and Bonde do Rolê to emerge in her wake.[5]

The musician Mike Shinoda of alternative rock bands Linkin Park and Fort Minor highlighted the song as the latter band's anthem during the European leg of their 2005 tour.[6] A remix of the song was played by DJ AM and Travis Barker during the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards.

The song was named the 215th best song of the decade by Pitchfork.[7]

Track listings and formats

Credits and personnel

Adapted from album liner notes:[9]

Charts

Chart (2005) Peak
UK Singles Chart[10]
 88

References

  1. ^ "Brazilian Wax". The New Yorker. 25 July 2005. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Ghetto fabulous". The Guardian. London. 18 September 2005.
  3. ^ "MIA: Real Refugee". Archived from the original on 9 July 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  4. ^ "SPIN". January 2006.
  5. ^ Collins, Hattie (18 August 2007). "Hattie Collins meets rapper MIA". The Guardian. UK. Retrieved 12 August 2010.
  6. ^ "Mike Shinoda's Playlist by Various Artists - Download Mike Shinoda's Playlist on iTunes". iTunes. Archived from the original on 13 July 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  7. ^ "500 best songs of the decade". Pitchfork.com. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  8. ^ "ARIA Report 804. New Release single section" (PDF). Webarchive.nla.gov.au. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 August 2005. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
  9. M.I.A. XL Recordings. 2005.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link
    )
  10. ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK : 1994–2008 : M–My Vitriol". Zobbel.de. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
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