Did M.I.A Rustle The Superb Owl’s Feathers?
Our now greatest British export, M.I.A, last night “stuck it” to America during Madonna’s apparently budget-free half-time show.
Alongside Nicki Minaj, 152 million adorning American sports fans tuned in to witness the outrage, it’s thought generating mass drunken fury across the country. Controversy travels quickly, with almost all national publications and blogs reporting the offense.
The NFL were quick to issue an apology:
“The obscene gesture in the performance was completely inappropriate, very disappointing, and we apologise to our fans.”
This soggy statement bears striking similarity to Janet Jackson’s infamous Nip-Slip of 2004, which was then blanketed as a “wardrobe malfunction”. Once again NBC could only flounder:
“We apologize for the inappropriate gesture that aired during halftime. It was a spontaneous gesture that our delay system caught late.”
A couple of other Brits also garnered a healthy portion of the spotlight, taking centre stage in the infamously expensive Superb Owl commercials. There was:
- David Beckham’s typically saucy H&M slot
- Elton John’s royal Pepsi push
- Whilst Ricky Gervais illustrated what happens when you reject a Facebook friend request.
The average price for just one of these coveted 30-second slots was a grotesque $3.5 million, and the big guns certainly pulled out all the stops.
Did M.I.A need this “cheap stunt”? You too can have a heart-attack over the flip-off, below. Alternatively just watch her great new video here, which was released last Thursday and already had 3 million hits before the finger. This has since risen to 4.5 million. It’s all about the music man.
-James Godwin, February 6th, 2012
This was a genius marketing move on M.I.A’s part!