Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam was born on the 18th July 1975 in Hounslow, London, England of Sri Lankan Tamil ancestry. She is best known in the world by her stage name M.I.A., a hip hop recording artist, and director of “N.E.E.T.”, her own record label. She is also recognized as a visual artist. Her career in the entertainment industry has been active since 2000s.
Have you ever wondered how rich is M.I.A., as of early 2016? It is estimated from sources that the overall size of M.I.A.’s net worth is as high as $10 million, which has been accumulated through her successful career in the music industry. During her career, she collaborated with many famous musicians, which also contributed to her overall wealth. In 2009, M.I.A. was named one of the world’s most influential people, by Time.
M.I.A. Net Worth $10 Million
M.I.A. was born in London, but raised with her younger brother in Jaffna, a town in northern Sri Lanka., to where her parents moved when she was a baby, and where her father became active in politics. They moved around the country frequently, as her father was hiding from the Sri Lankan army during the civil war. Later, the family moved to India, and then in 1986 when M.I.A. was 11 years old, returned to London. In Wimbledon she attended the Ricards Lodge High School, but later continued education at the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, from which she graduated in 2000.
Before she started expanding her career in the music industry, M.I.A. worked as a graphic designer and filmmaker for the band Elastica, going on a tour with the band, and beginning to write her own lyrics and music, so that in 2005 she released her first album “Alular”. Although the album only reached 190th place on the Billboard top 200 chart, it received positive critics, which inspired M.I.A. to continue with her career. In 2007, she released her second album, entitled “Kala”, which reached No. 19 on the Billboard top 200 chart, and it has sold over 500,000 copies, which greatly increased her net worth. In support of her second album, M.I.A. embarked on a tour, which included concerts throughout Europe, the USA, and Asia, and this also increased her net worth.
Her third album was released in 2010, entitled “Maya”, reaching No. 9 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. After the release, M.I.A. decided to embark on another tour including performing in Lokeren, Belgium, in front of 13,500 people. He net worth rose steadily.
Her latest accomplishment in the music industry is her fourth album, entitled “Matangi”, released in 2013. The album didn’t land as well with the public as her previous releases, as it only reached No. 23 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, and only 15,000 copies in its first week.
If to talk about her personal life, M.I.A. was in a relationship with American DJ Diplo for five years. While she lived in Brooklyn, New York, M.I.A. was engaged to Benjamin Bronfman, with whom she has a son, named Ikhyd Edgar Arular Bronfman, but they separated in 2012. As many others millionaires, she is a noted philanthropist as well, known for establishing the organization Youth Action International.
