Just one week after winning Album of the Year (AOTY) at the Grammys, Puerto Rican musician Bad Bunny continued a historic run with his unifying Super Bowl halftime show. On Feb. 1, Bad Bunny became the first artist to win AOTY with an all-Spanish submission, but this wouldn’t be the end; according to Boardroom, his Super Bowl halftime performance broke viewership records with an estimated 135.4 million viewers.
The performance was packed full of history and culture. The sugar cane-clad dancers transformed Levi’s Stadium into Puerto Rico. The island, which has been a U.S. territory since 1898, is known for its sugar cane fields, and Bad Bunny’s all-white outfit was reminiscent of a jíbaro (farmer).
Moreover, there were plenty of nods to iconic Latin and Caribbean culture, such as shaved ice, coconut, and taco stands. The performance also showcased a casita with celebrity cameos from stars of differing American nationalities, such as Karol G (Colombia), Cardi B (Dominican Republic), and Pedro Pascal (Chile). Also, Lady Gaga’s Latin rendition of her hit, “Die With A Smile,” featured her wearing a flor de maga brooch, the national flower of Puerto Rico.
Bad Bunny highlighted Puerto Rico’s power line inequity, which has been particularly troubled since the disastrous 2017 Hurricane Maria. The U.S. Department of Energy (under the Trump Administration) has “canceled $815 million of a $1-billion fund meant to bolster the island’s grid against storms and outages.” Including the segment of sparking power lines brings awareness, and hopefully, a call to action, for Puerto Ricans living without a reliable grid.
Bad Bunny’s messages of love and togetherness resonated with viewers of all backgrounds. The show included messages, such as a banner with the phrase “THE ONLY THING MORE POWERFUL THAN HATE IS LOVE,” and a football with the words “Together, We Are America.” The theme of Pan-Americanism and cultural identity was at the forefront of the halftime show, from beginning to end; dancers marched with flags from all different countries in the Americas, and Bad Bunny even carried the original Puerto Rican flag, which is associated with its independence movement.
At one point, he handed his Grammy award to a young boy, five-year-old actor Lincoln Fox, as a symbol of hope for many Latin-American communities feeling fear and uncertainty under the Trump Administration. Though the “American Dream” may feel like long-lost nostalgia, together, we are America—North, Central, and South. What connects us is far stronger than what separates us.
In a political climate fraught with division and hostile polarity, there are messages like Bad Bunny’s that create joy and community. The Super Bowl LX Halftime performance is a reminder that music, dance, and expression bring us together. Although divisive rhetoric preceded the show, viewers of Bad Bunny’s performance left feeling a renewed sense of optimism, and, in today’s political climate, that is quite the feat.