Michael Peña Says He's Still Acting While Playing in Band Nico Vega

Michael Peña plays in a band, but music isn't really an escape for him ... because he's just going from one gig to the next ... keeping his day job as an actor too.

We got the 'Ant-Man' star at LAX and our photog asked him if leaving movie sets to play onstage with Nico Vega is a nice break from acting.

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But, as Michael explains, the grind never stops ... he's on his way to Mexico to play a show, but then has to fly back down to Australia to film at the end of the week ... so he's got a lot on his plate.

Asked why he stays so busy, Michael jokes ... "Because I'm Mexican, dude, and I think it's in my blood."

It takes a lot of talent to act and play music, but Michael's serving some humble pie here ... telling us he's just a mediocre musician and actor who works really hard to hone his craft.

Nico Vega's got a new EP out too, and Michael's band gets him to plug "Make It Out Alive" ... looks like a pretty tight-knit group.

Michael's pretty chatty here, and he tells us some of his goals for his music career.