On February 8th, 2025, Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, also known as Bad Bunny, headlined the Super Bowl LX halftime show at Levi’s Stadium, delivering a powerful performance that reached an average of 128.2 million viewers worldwide. This performance was more than a halftime show; it carried a powerful message. He used this global opportunity to send a personal and historical message.
This halftime performance sparked tons of discussion, and today I will be uncovering it.
The Performance Itself
His performance began in the sugar cane fields, and he opened with his viral 2022 song, “Tití Me Preguntó.” He strode past vendors of coco frio, tacos, and piraguas as well as a table of older gentlemen playing dominoes, and women at a nail salon. The first two minutes of his 13-minute performance took place mainly in the maze, and then he emerged onto the roof of La Casita, which was supposed to be a replica of a traditional Puerto Rican home. He also featured Lady Gaga, who appears after a wedding takes place, which happened to be a real wedding, making it even more exciting, singing “Die with a Smile” with a Latin spin on it, as well as Puerto Rican pop star Ricky Martin. Additionally, some of his background dancers featured Jessica Alba, Pedro Pascal, and Cardi B (wish they performed I like it like that). Finally, ending his performance with “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” from his sixth solo album.
The Meaning Behind His Performance
That was just the overview of his performance; once you analyze it, you realize the hidden meaning behind it, which makes it so powerful.
Firstly, the sugar cane fields were a symbol of Puerto Rico’s cash crop and a source of labor exploitation. His speech before Lady Gaga came on screen translated him saying, “My name is Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio. I am here at Superbowl Lx because I never stopped believing in myself, and you shouldn’t stop believing in yourself either, you are worth more than you think, trust me.”
He is speaking directly to the viewers and giving all of us hope during these tense times. Additionally, he ended it off by saying, “Is this what you wanted?” Before the camera pans to Lady Gaga, symbolizing how he was critiqued for performing at the Super Bowl because they wanted someone more “traditionally American,” although Puerto Rico is a part of America. He is then shown giving the Grammy he won just a couple of days before the Super Bowl to his younger self, sending a message of inspiration. The performance barely had any English in it but that was on purpose because you don’t need to understand the language to understand music and plus English isn’t the first language of America anyways. Lastly, the most powerful part of his performance was the end, where he is seen saying “God Bless America” and names all the countries within South America with a billboard behind which says, “The only thing more powerful than hate is love,” which sent the message that America isn’t a country, it is a continent.
Why This Message is Important
During this time of hate, a message like this on mainstream media was truly needed. It showed solidarity and empathy towards the entire Latin American community as well as South America as a whole. This vibrant celebration of Puerto Rican identity shows us that if we come together and celebrate every culture, the world can heal, and at the end of the day, we all bleed the same, so our cultures should not divide us. Also, we can see that at the end of the day, we are all connected in one way or another. For instance, this is seen during BAILE INoLVIDABLE, when Bad Bunny wakes up a kid sleeping on chairs during the wedding, which is a universal experience in many cultures, even in South Asia. This signifies that if you look at things from a perspective of love rather than hate, you’ll find the many things that we all have in common.
Whether you enjoyed his performance or not, the message behind it was needed. I think that every artist should have the ability to bring their culture everywhere they go and represent it. I personally look forward to the Halftime performances every year, and Bad Bunny did not disappoint. Also, we can all agree that he looked great during the performance. I know that’s one thing that kept me hooked. But for now, this is a quick recap on his performance, hopefully it uncovered any hidden messages and the amazing visuals that were seen. Anyways, cheers to Benito Bowl.