There was probably a deeper meaning behind the final sentence of Bad Bunny’s reaction statement after being announced as the Super Bowl LX halftime performer.
It’s always tricky trying to decipher the words of others, but this is good practice for when the older football scribes inevitably turn to me in the press box of Levi’s Stadium, asking, What did the bunny man say? after every song on the setlist.
Just don’t ask me what “yo perreo sola” means. We don’t have time for all that, but I’ll make time to explain why Jay-Z and Roc Nation chose Bad Bunny and why the NFL ultimately approved of the global superstar from Puerto Rico. More importantly, the significance of having an artist who primarily makes music in Spanish on the biggest stage the United States has to offer needs to be explained.
.@sanbenito. Super Bowl LX. Santa Clara. February 2026. #AppleMusicHalftime #SBLX @AppleMusic @SNFonNBC @RocNation pic.twitter.com/CMn8BtUGzV
— NFL (@NFL) September 29, 2025
“Ve y dile a tu abuela, que seremos el HALFTIME SHOW DEL SUPER BOWL,” Bad Bunny said to end his statement.
To translate in English, tell your grandmother that we will be performing at the Super Bowl halftime show, as Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, a.k.a Bad Bunny, said. It doesn’t matter that some grandmothers have never heard of Bad Bunny. And, apparently, everyone who has never heard of one of the most-streamed artists on the planet felt the need to comment on social media that they have no clue about who this “bunny man” is that will be headlining the Super Bowl Halftime Show in February.
But I’ll avoid being sidetracked with sarcasm because Bad Bunny performing at the Super Bowl is important to a lot of people, including myself. My grandmother has never heard of Bad Bunny—maybe—but she will be pleased to hear that a musician will be performing primarily in Spanish during a football game she doesn’t care about. She and many other abuelas understand the importance of millions of people hearing Spanish during the Super Bowl.
Bad Bunny mentioned that we will be the halftime show because Latino culture will be heavily represented on the grandest stage. Our culture is adored by millions, regardless of upbringing. And right now, Latinos and their culture don’t feel welcome in the U.S., regardless of legal status.
It’s been disappointing to see the surge in ICE raids over the past few months, which oftentimes target Latinos solely because of how they look and sound. Our people are afraid to leave their homes. They are scared to work and provide for their families out of fear of being harassed.
Many lively areas filled with vibrant cultures from around the world have become ghost towns, especially in California, where the Super Bowl will be played on Feb. 8 in Santa Clara. Five years after Bad Bunny’s music made us dance from our homes in the middle of a pandemic and helped us regain the urge to live our lives again, he’s again saying it’s O.K. to be you. Be who you are, and grand opportunities, such as performing at the Super Bowl halftime show, will eventually come.
Some of the usual suspects who like to turn everything into a political spin have brought up that Bad Bunny recently declined to tour in the U.S due to concern over the ICE raids. I’m not here to argue, but politics aside, that was more about protecting his people, the ones being targeted for these mass deportations. He wants to put on a show for them. He wants to make them feel included for a change. Again, it’s about us, and not necessarily about the individual performer or his genre of music, because that, too, can be tricky to explain. (Trap Bunny is my personal favorite.)
So, no, the NFL doesn’t view this decision as a political move. This is a smart move, one that generates plenty of money. That alone makes sense to these billionaire owners. I’m sure none of them cared that Karol G performed at halftime during the Week 1 matchup between the Chargers and Chiefs in Brazil. They’re only glad that their product is being exposed to another large audience. Many millions were made after the league and Brazil worked out a deal to bring more games to the South American country.
You can’t have games in Ireland, England, Germany and Spain—and a celebrity flag football game in Saudi Arabia with the game’s biggest stars—and only cater to the American audience.
The beauty of the American audience is that it is diverse. Maybe it’s not so bad to make everyone feel included. We survived when Kendrick Lamar performed last year. Or when Coldplay performed in 2016. And when Bruce Springsteen performed in 2009.
Bad Bunny may not matter to some, but his background and the type of music he creates are very important to millions around the world. It will all be fine. Let the grandmothers nod along to the bunny man’s music.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Why Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Selection Is Meaningful to Me and Many Others.
