By: Amelia-Rose Williams
As each year passes by, everyone wants to know, âWho is going to perform at the Super Bowl?â This year’s pick is âBad Bunnyâ or Benito Antonio MartĂnez Ocasio. Bad Bunny is a musician specializing in Latin trap and reggaeton; outside of his music, Bad Bunny is recognized for his electric sense of fashion. He was born in the Almirante Sur neighborhood of Vega Baja, located in Puerto Rico. His mother, Lysaurie Ocasio, worked as a school teacher, and his father, Tito MartĂnez, worked as a truck driver.Â
Bad Bunnyâs influence on music came from his parents, who were both into ballads, more specifically âpop balladsâ and âmerengueâ. In his town, Vega Baja, there were a lot of issues with drug trafficking, as a result Benito was introverted and has expressed on many occasions in interviews how he âpreferred to stay homeâ. He was a part of his churchâs choir until he was thirteen, and as he continued to develop a love for music, he came across the ârapâ genre. Shortly after discovering rap, he became extremely interested in learning more about music. Some artists who influenced him are Victor Manuelle, Marc Anthony, Tego Calderon, Daddy Yankee, & Hector Lavoe.Â
Unclear of the path that lay before him at age twenty, Benito had not done well in his first semester in college, even failing some of his classes. He started working at a grocery store. While working, his friends had encouraged him to upload music to SoundCloud. In the recent decade, SoundCloud has been responsible for discovering a handful of small artists, just looking to share music and grow a small community, to making it big and becoming some of the most trending artists of the decade. Unsure of his abilities, Bad Bunny didnât take his friend’s suggestion and continued trying to perfect his craft.
However, regardless of his decision, someone presumably in his circle uploaded two of his songs onto SoundCloud without his knowledge. Those songs were âtentacionâ and âgetâ, both going viral by accident, and Bad Bunny had no clue that they would change his life forever. DJ Luian came across the songs and saw that he had talent. He noticed that Bad Bunny blended elements of âLatin Popâ with âTrapâ and a hint of âAlternative R&Bâ. Bad Bunny signed to DJ Luianâs label in 2016; his colleagues werenât only impressed by his music and distinct style, but the potential that he could truly be a star. In 2016, Bad Bunny released âSOY PEORâ; it was an instant hit and officially put him on the map. In 2017, he acquired a booking deal to tour Latin America, and he hosted his own show on âBeats 1â called âTrap Kingsâ. Bad Bunny had a deep desire to gain attention from his music worldwide. In 2018, exactly what he manifested, he got.Â
2018 was truly the year that changed Bad Bunnyâs life; he collaborated with some of the biggest names in the game during that time. He was featured as a collaborator in Cardi Bâs song âI Like Itâ along with J Balvin on her album âInvasion of Privacyâ. In addition to that, he featured Drake on a song called âMIAâ on his album âX 100 preâ. Bad Bunny officially released his debut album on Christmas Eve 2018, called âX 100 preâ, which placed #11 on Billboard 200 and was certified diamond in the U.S, and ranked number forty-one on Rolling Stoneâs list of greatest debut albums of all time. As he has progressed, he has secured across various award platforms 77 wins with a total of 146 nominations. The Guardian labeled him as âthe worldâs biggest pop starâ, and in 2021, he appeared on TIME 100’s âmost influential peopleâ. Bad Bunny has also continued to push gender norms in fashion with his sense of eccentric style, paired with Storm Pablo, his stylist, to help further his fashion image. Heâs gone so far with his fashion influence, as he was chosen to be a co-chair at the âMet Galaâ in 2024.
All of this being said, why was all of this important? Currently, our country is facing a great divide; our government is pushing ICE raids throughout the country’s most popular cities, and pushing a harmful concept that our country’s immigrants are all âillegalâ. This originally started as a way to get rid of âcriminalsâ within our country; however, they have arrested primarily hard-working citizens trying to make a better life for their families. Some are working to get their visas and paperwork to become legal citizens of the United States. Even with that being the case, they have still not received any grace from the government, which has gone as far as passing legislation to allow âprofilingâ as a due process clause to make an arrest. Outside of this, there are several issues causing controversy in our country, leaving a lot of people feeling melancholy, angry, stressed, and depressed.Â
Itâs important to acknowledge Bad Bunnyâs accomplishments as an artist because of what is happening and the negativity that he has faced. Being announced as the Super Bowl LX halftime performer, the media is picking him apart based on what is currently happening in our country. Furthermore, pushing an agenda based on ignorant racial stereotypes and continuing to spread false narratives about the entirety of the Hispanic community. I like to call this âfeigning ignoranceâ, the choice to stay uninformed and continue to be hateful against a subject or an individual. Itâs a choice to be hateful. Bad Bunny has more than proven he is capable of performing at the Super Bowl; he has his whole career to show for it, and that should be enough.