The Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny has been selected to headline this year’s Super Bowl halftime show. This makes it the second year in a row that what some may deem as a “controversial artist” was chosen to perform.
Last year, Kendrick Lamar delivered a riveting performance, but more importantly, it was riddled with hidden messages. Lamar critiqued President Donald Trump’s administration, called out a lack of American racial justice, and highlighted the Black experience. Both the artist and the NFL received major backlash for this production. A source at the football league even told the U.S. Sun that a “mistake was made” when choosing the artist.Â
This year, a similar backlash can be expected. Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, has previously spoken out against Trump. The artist threw his support to former Vice President Kamala Harris after she criticized Trump for neglecting Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017. Some comments have already surfaced. Several far-right insiders have begun their complaints.
First and foremost, concern about the language seems very prevalent in these protests. Bad Bunny sings predominantly in Spanish. The controversy continues to grow as Republican officials, including Trump himself, weigh in. The president called this decision “absolutely ridiculous.”
Turning Point USA, the conservative action network founded by the late Charlie Kirk, has announced their own halftime show in response. The “All-American Halftime Show” survey posted on the organization’s website asked fans to choose from, with the first choice being “Anything in English.” After the announcement of the counterprogram, several right-wing internet personalities fell for a fabricated poster revealing the lineup for the show. Quite a few MAGA musicians were featured on the poster, like Kid Rock and John Rich. At the bottom of the poster, a special guest appearance by “Measles” materialized. However, no official lineup or artist announcement has been released by TPUSA.Â
Another criticism of Bad Bunny is his lack of tour dates within the United States. The rapper addressed this issue, claiming that it was for the safety of his fans. In an interview with 1-D Magazine, the singer said he has enjoyed performing in the U.S. in the past, “But there was the issue that ICE could be outside [my concert]. And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”
Some believed that leaving the U.S. out of the tour was out of a potential dislike for the country, but Bad Bunny specifically addressed this, saying that he loved connecting with American Latinos. He’s not the first popular artist to express concern and even disdain for Immigration Services. Within the past week, several others, including Chance the Rapper and Chappell Roan, both gestured and declared “F*ck ICE!” during their performances.
As of Oct. 14, Kirk, founder of TPUSA, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, accepted by his widow, Erika Kirk. Now, the CEO of Turning Point USA, Erika Kirk, delivered a speech following the award’s acceptance. She praised her husband, revealing that if he were still alive, he most likely would have run for president in the future. As for this secondary show, little to nothing is known about whether or not it will actually occur, or who will perform.