Anthony Mackie Teases the Tupac Song He’s Using to Prepare for His Role in ‘Captain America’

To some, it may seem odd that actor Anthony Mackie, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s newly-minted Captain America, will be hosting the upcoming CMT Music Awards. But, as he explained on the carpet at the 2022 Grammy Awards, he’s no stranger to the power of music.

“Music is a part of my life,” Mackie told Variety senior entertainment writer Angelique Jackson for Variety On the Carpet presented by DIRECTV. “Every role that I play, I pick a song to represent that character, and I pick a piece of art to represent that character. So music has always been kind of the defining factor of my life and my career.”

Mackie was on hand Sunday evening to present an award alongside two-time Grammy-nominated musician Kelsea Ballerini, who will join him to host the CMT Music Awards, a fan-based ceremony honoring the best in country music videos and television, on April 11. Mackie told Jackson it was his first time at the Grammys, and that he was especially excited to see the “Legend-ary” John Legend, and was hoping to meet Bruno Mars or Usher, whose music he said “has literally been the jukebox to my life for the past 22 years.”

When it comes to incorporating music into his acting work, Mackie once used Legend’s song “Ordinary People” to prepare for a film. For his upcoming turn in the next “Captain America” movie, Mackie teased the song he’s using for his role, but the lyrics are a bit NSFW.

“I cant say it on camera, but it’s a Tupac song,” Mackie said. “And it starts off, ‘First off, dot dot dot dot dot dot … ‘”

Sources lead Variety to believe the song in question is Tupac Shakur’s 1996 single “Hit ‘Em Up,” a notorious diss track aimed at East Coast rappers. But it’ll be a while before audiences learn whether the song matches Mackie’s performance in “Captain America 4,” which Disney has yet to set an official release date for. Until then, fans will have to revisit Mackie’s 2009 turn as the late rapper in “Notorious” or listen to Tupac’s discography while re-watching “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier” on Disney Plus.