Mahershala Ali Listened to Ka’s ‘Honor Killed the Samurai’ for New Hitman Role: ‘It Just Was the Right Vibe & Tone for This Guy’

Mahershala Ali was at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend at the premiere of his new movie Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, in which he plays a devoutly religious hitman who just lost his wife and now finds himself on a journey to protect his children.

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ETalk caught up with him on the red carpet and asked what would be on a playlist for a single dad who just so happens to also be a hitman, and he revealed that he listened to the late Ka’s critically acclaimed fourth solo album in order to get ready for the role.

“I listened to a lot of this album called Honor Killed the Samurai, which is by an artist named Ka,” he said. “And it just felt like it just was the right vibe and tone for this guy. Intentional, methodical, somewhat a slower pace and vibe, but it has a certain energy to it that’s very special. So I listened to that album quite a bit.”

Ali and Ka were friends and the actor has been a big champion of the underrated rapper and producer, so much so that he would like to see a documentary based on his life.

“There’s an artist that I love and admire that not enough people know enough about, a brother by the name of Ka,” he said after being asked if there was a hip-hop story that he wanted to see be told. “An extraordinary MC. Him and Roc Marciano, I think laid the groundwork for a really relevant underground sound that has had a wonderful life in the last like 12 years or so. So, I would like to see a documentary on Ka and his life. I know he’s an extraordinary man, he was a friend, New York City firefighter, an extraordinary MC, an amazing producer. I think the world needs to see that.”

The Brooklyn rapper, whose full-time job was as a captain in the New York Fire Department and was a first responder during the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, tragically died in October 2024 at the young age of 52. You can hear a new verse of his on Navy Blue’s Sir Render.

Written and directed by Bassam Tariq and also starring John Cho, Giancarlo Esposito and Tramell Tillman, Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother hits theaters nationwide on Friday, Sept. 25