Bad Bunny headlining the 2026 Super Bowl has made one thing clear: we desperately need to step out of our own bubbles.
When the NFL announced last week that Bad Bunny would headline the 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show, I was so excited I started playing my Bad Bunny playlist while wondering what crazy stunt he was going to pull off.
I bet that man is going to have El Yunque on one side of the field and a beach on the other side,”
said my brother jokingly as we came up with conspiracies of what Bad Bunny would bring next Feb.
See, as a Puerto Rican college student, Bad Bunny has infiltrated every part of my life. I hear him on my ride to school, at the supermarket, at the mall, even at 3:00 a.m. when a car blasts his music outside my apartment. Bad Bunny isn’t just a musical artist in my life; he is culture, he represents Puerto Rican identity.
So, you can imagine my shock when I saw news outlets announcing him as headliner flooded with comments like: “Who? Nobody knows who that is,” and “Make sure his visa is good. ICE would be there to pick him up.” It dampened the news for me. It taught me that many of us live in our own bubbles so badly that we forget there are extremely successful people outside of those we know, but that doesn’t make them any less accomplished.
A Puerto Rican man, a U.S. citizen, will be performing at the Super Bowl—and yet Puerto Ricans are constantly questioned about our citizenship. When Monica Puig won the gold medal in Tennis in 2016, some Americans claimed it was really a U.S. victory because Puerto Rico is a territory. When Puerto Ricans shine, suddenly it’s America’s win. But the moment we criticize the U.S., like the way Bad Bunny has by speaking up about ICE and colonialism, we’re treated as outsiders.
Yes, Bad Bunny might be no one to you, and that’s valid. I couldn’t name a single Rolling Stones song if my life depended on it. But, not knowing an artist doesn’t erase their global relevance. What we can’t argue with is that Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti is the most streamed album on Spotify with more than 20 billion streams. Objectively, he is one of the most successful performers in the world right now.
We could focus on the negativity, but moving forward, I’d suggest focusing on what this means to the people who it matters to. Bad Bunny just had a 31-day sold-out residency in Puerto Rico. I was lucky enough to get tickets, and it was an out-of-this-world experience that celebrated who we are as Puerto Ricans, who we were, and who we wish to be.
I can’t speak for everyone, but I can say I’m overwhelmingly proud he will be doing the Super Bowl. I appreciate every moment I’ve spent with my grandmother singing “DtMF,” every time I’ve danced with my aunt to “Tití Me Preguntó,” and every time I’ve listened to DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, feeling that pit in my stomach as I think about my parents 3,000 miles away wishing I had more memories with them on our beautiful island.
So you can mute the TV. As for me? You will find me flat ironing my Puerto Rican flag with my Bad Bunny playlist on full blast, waiting for him to piss a lot of people off.