Few performers at the Super Bowl halftime show have garnered the amount of attention – and criticism – that Bad Bunny accumulated this year before his performance. Mike Gallagher, a conservative columnist and radio personality, called the show a “Democrat-orchestrated national humiliation ritual” that aimed to “[undermine] traditional American values.” President Donald Trump said the decision was “absolutely ridiculous” when it was first revealed that Bad Bunny would perform. Conservatives argued that having Bad Bunny perform was an “exclusive” act, not an inclusive one. The criticism went on and on.
Bad Bunny’s halftime show responded to this criticism with a joyful expression of community and love that turned one of the biggest stages in television history into a personal love letter to Puerto Rico, immigrants and America as a whole.
The show opened with Bad Bunny in a sugarcane field, surrounded by background dancers performing traditional farming work, a nod to Puerto Rico’s history of exporting sugarcane as a cash crop when it became a U.S. territory in the late 19th century. Connections to Puerto Rico’s history are sprinkled throughout the performance.
The show’s numerous settings aimed to reflect the deep sense of community Latin Americans have with each other. The show moves from the sugarcane field to a traditional Puerto Rican house, where Bad Bunny orchestrates a house party where the likes of Pedro Pascal, Jessica Alba and Cardi B were seen dancing. The joy of dancing and partying with family and friends was on full display in this scene and others throughout the show. It was a way to show that even in the face of heightened fear and hate for immigrant communities, unity and love can more than counter adversities.
The show went on to officiate a real wedding, a move that highlighted the emphasis on family connection and celebration found in Latin American communities. Lady Gaga makes a special appearance to sing a rendition of her hit song “Die With a Smile,” donned in a blue gown with a flor de maga pinned to her chest, which is the national flower of Puerto Rico.
After the wedding came the party. Bad Bunny slid in and out of frame as the camera jumped around the scene of dance and celebration. The couple who had just been married cut a wedding cake. Moments later, Bad Bunny woke up a child sleeping on two chairs pushed together, a clever nod to a common event of kids falling asleep on makeshift beds when the party delves too far into the night.
It was a joyous scene, and the highlight of the show for me: a beautiful celebration of family and love that is hard not to smile at. Lady Gaga’s rendition of “Die With a Smile” was a welcome addition to the performance, even though nobody watching might have expected Lady Gaga to show up. But then again, if a real wedding could have happened during the Super Bowl halftime show, then Lady Gaga could have shown up.
Following the wedding was a scene meant to resemble a Puerto Rican neighborhood in New York City as Bad Bunny performed his song “NUEVAYoL,” an ode to the city famous for its Puerto Rican heritage. Bad Bunny knew better than to leave New York out of this performance. No city has more connection to Puerto Rico than New York City, and Bad Bunny pays a respectful homage to the city that has raised so many Puerto Ricans.
Maria Antonia “Toñita” Cay, the owner of Brooklyn Caribbean Social Club – one of the few remaining Puerto Rican social clubs in the city – made a special appearance when she poured Bad Bunny a quick shot of liquor. She is a beloved figure of the Puerto Rican community, and her short appearance here was proof of Bad Bunny’s attention to detail and cultural heritage.
After “NUEVAYoL” ends, Bad Bunny handed his Grammy to a young boy watching his Grammy win on TV, a symbolic gesture that could have meant either Bad Bunny congratulating his younger self or him passing on the accolades to the future generation. Either way, it was a buzzworthy moment that garnered a lot of praise and attention after the Super Bowl ended.
Ricky Martin, the other guest singer, made a special appearance, sitting on one of the plastic chairs seen on Bad Bunny’s most recent album cover. He sang passionately about protecting Puerto Rico’s cultural heritage from gentrification and overtourism: “They want to take my river and my beach too/They want my neighborhood and your kids to leave/No, don’t let go of the flag nor forget the lelolai/’Cause I don’t want them to do to you what happened to Hawaii.”
That short performance was followed by Bad Bunny climbing a broken utility pole while singing “El Apagón,” which directly translates to “the blackout” and is a reference to Puerto Rico’s infrastructure problems and threats of natural disaster. This was the most somber point of the halftime show, where Martin and Bad Bunny address the problems facing Puerto Rico and the history of neglect from the federal government when it comes to natural disaster protection, gentrification and infrastructure updates.
Bad Bunny ended the halftime show with a striking scene of unity and love. As he climbed down from the utility pole, a team of backup dancers came running in, each of them holding a flag of each country in the Americas. Bad Bunny himself, holding a football, slowly walked through the sugarcane fields from the beginning with the flags behind him, as he shouts out every nation in the Americas.
Finally, Bad Bunny shouted out his motherland, Puerto Rico, then showing that his football has writing on it that says, “Together we are America.” At the back, one of the stadium billboards, in stark black and white lettering, read: “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.” He ended his show with one final message: “Seguimos aquí,” which translates to, “We are still here.”
Bad Bunny’s halftime show was a celebration of American unity and Puerto Rican heritage, a joyful performance meant to remind viewers that in the face of anti-immigrant sentiment and rising hate for outsiders, it is love, community and hope that can act as the biggest form of rebellion. To be joyful is not only to rebel, but to confirm that you belong here. No artist in recent memory has used the gargantuan stage of the Super Bowl halftime show to more noble ends than Bad Bunny did this year.
Francisco Aguirre-Ghiso can be reached by [email protected].
