Filipino rapper Shanti Dope’s “Amatz” was featured on the latest episode of Marvel Studios’ The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
On the episode titled “Power Broker,” the track plays during a scene as the two titular heroes (played by Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan) head to the fictional Southeast Asian city of Madripoor with Baron Zemo. The 6-episode miniseries premiered on Disney+ on March 19.
“Amatz” became the subject of controversy when the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) pushed to ban the song in 2019, citing its supposed promotion of drug use and urges the rapper to instead make a song that’s “in line” with the government’s campaign against illegal drugs. The rapper’s management vehemently denied the accusation in a statement. “While anyone is welcome to interpret a song or any cultural text, it is also clear that for an interpretation to be valid, it needs to have basis, and must be within the context of the cultural text as a whole,” the statement reads.
Watch the scene and the music video for “Amatz” below:
