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Bucky Done Gun

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"Bucky Done Gun"
SinglebyM.I.A.
from the albumArular
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 musicianM.I.A.'s albumArular.The song was composed in London in 2004 as one of the last compositions for her debut album and credited to Maya "M.I.A." Arulpragasam, Carol Conners,Bill Conti,Wesley "Diplo" Pentz,Ayn RobbinsandDeize Tigrona.It was released byXL Recordingsin the UK,Interscope Recordsin the US andRemote Control Recordsin Australia on 11 July 2005 in 12-inch vinyl and CD single formats. The B-side of the release is the song "Pull Up the People" fromArular.Upon release, the song reached number 88 on theUK Singles Chart.

"Bucky Done Gun" is an uptempobaile funk-dancehallsong, combining elements of electro, grime, hip hop and pop music. The song is inspired from Tigrona's funk carioca song "Injeção" from where a drum loop is included and flipped and horns are sampled but recomposed from the song "Gonna Fly Now"composed by Conti, Conners and Robbins.[1][2]The song is produced by Diplo with additional production byDave "A. Brucker" Taylor,P. Byrne and Wizard. The song's title word "Bucky" is a reference to the London grime slang word for a gun, while the composition is lyrically influenced by her experiences ofcivil war in Sri Lankaand how the songwriter viewed the journey ofrap 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 accompanyingmusic videodirected byAnthony Mandlerwas filmed on a desert inNevada,US. M.I.A. intended for the video to be shot in thefavelasin 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 onMTV Brasilmarked 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 onJimmy Kimmel Live!and performs the song on her concert tours, first on theArular Tourand most recently on the/\/\ /\ Y /\ Tourwhere it was well appreciated by fans.[citation needed]M.I.A.'s performance of the song and "Injeção" with Tigrona at the 2005TIM Festivalin Brazil was a critical and fan success. "Bucky Done Gun" was included in the soundtrack ofNBA Live 06,renamed and re-edited as "Bucky Done."

Composition

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"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 about50 Cent.It started off asPublic Enemyand ended with 50 Cent. What was that journey (for rap music) and how did that happen? In London, Bucky is aslangword for gun. It’s a real British,grimeword. So I was thinking, what is the aftermath ofgangster rap?Were they going to get into therapy? "

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

Music video

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Themusic videofor "Bucky Done Gun" was directed byAnthony Mandler.Filming took place in theMojave 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,guerrillastyle. 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

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"Bucky Done Gun", as writer W. H. fromSpinnotes, led toBrazilbeing where M.I.A. had enjoyed her most remarkable resonance after the release ofArular.The song became a hit onMTV Brasilafter its release, a first for theindigenous musicscene of thefavelasor urban ghettos inRio de Janeiro.She stated in an interview from the country during herArular Tour"There's a big divide between the classes.Favela Funkis seen as music of the poor people, and 'Bucky' is the first time they've played that sound on commercial radio. It's my first visit here and it's mayhem - me turning up at a funk ball is a big deal. It's kinda complicated. "Critics have praised the development as encouraging and reflective of the emerging new reality," the idea ofpopulistart and populist technology dissolving cultural borders not with someEurocentricstand-up-for-love sap ballad, but with a politicised 'let's fuck' anthem by aBritish Sri Lankan,produced by aMississippi-born American DJ using a Rio de Janeiro ghetto groove. "[4]Hattie Collins ofThe Guardianhighlights M.I.A. as a baile funk/politicalpop pioneer with the release paving the way for bandsCSSandBonde do Rolêto emerge in her wake.[5]

The musicianMike Shinodaofalternative rockbandsLinkin ParkandFort Minorhighlighted the song as the latter band's anthem during the European leg of their 2005 tour.[6]A remix of the song was played byDJ AMandTravis Barkerduring the2008 MTV Video Music Awards.

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

Track listings and formats

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Credits and personnel

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Adapted from album liner notes:[9]

Charts

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

References

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  1. ^"Brazilian Wax".The New Yorker.25 July 2005.Retrieved30 May2022.
  2. ^"Ghetto fabulous".The Guardian.London. 18 September 2005.
  3. ^"MIA: Real Refugee".Archived fromthe originalon 9 July 2011.Retrieved30 May2022.
  4. ^"SPIN".January 2006.
  5. ^Collins, Hattie (18 August 2007)."Hattie Collins meets rapper MIA".The Guardian.UK.Retrieved12 August2010.
  6. ^"Mike Shinoda's Playlist by Various Artists - Download Mike Shinoda's Playlist on iTunes".iTunes.Archived fromthe originalon 13 July 2014.Retrieved27 February2014.
  7. ^"500 best songs of the decade".Pitchfork.com.Archived fromthe originalon 19 August 2016.Retrieved19 October2016.
  8. ^"ARIA Report 804. New Release single section"(PDF).Webarchive.nla.gov.au.Archived(PDF)from the original on 19 August 2005.Retrieved17 December2012.
  9. ^Bucky Done Gun(liner notes).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.Retrieved23 February2009.
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