Have you heard? M.I.A. was supposed to record her new album, Kala, in the United States with Timbaland but had trouble securing an American work visa. You might have read about it this month in her interviews with Rolling Stone, Spin, The Fader, er, Vulture, Pitchfork, Radar, or in her nine-page feature in Cat Fancy (it's not online yet). But, just in case you hadn't, the New York Times' Ben Sisario has you covered.

An Itinerant Refugee in a Hip-Hop World [NYT]
Earlier: M.I.A. Gets Drunk, Talks Beyoncé