This single by British alternative dance musician Maya Arulpragasam, who records under the name of M.I.A., finds her hooking up with Nate "Danja" Hills. The Timbaland protégé is best known for his collaborations with such pop acts as Britney Spears ("Gimme More") and Pink ("Sober").

The song is a reworked version of one that first appeared on M.I.A.'s late 2010 mixtape Vicki Leekx. The new version was released to digital retailers on January 31, 2012.

"Bad Girls" finds M.I.A. lyrically facing her imitators and haters as she sings, "Live fast, die young, bad girls do it well." Other wayward female titled tunes include Donna Summer's 1979 hit of the same title about prostitutes and Madonna's 1992 single concerning a woman who can't avoid cigarettes, drugs and one-night stands, "Bad Girl." The release of M.I.A's single coincided with that of the Material Girl's "Gimme All Your Luvin'" on which the Sri Lankan singer is a guest vocalist.

The song's music video was directed by Romain Gavras, who previously helmed M.I.A.'s clip for "Born Free." It finds the singer performing in a Middle Eastern desert with a backdrop of hijab attired dancers.