Super Super Bowl
Might as well be honest from the get go: I don’t speak Spanish, let alone understand Puerto Rican slang. I’m also not a huge fan of reggaeton or latin pop, mostly because that is not my culture. I’m a very white, European, played-piano-as-a-kid kind of guy. I’m a Queen, David Bowie and Pink Floyd junkie and I consider The Beatles to be the most important band in modern history. In other words, Bad Bunny is not quite aiming for my demographic.
Yet, his performance at this year’s Super Bowl was quite frankly groundbreaking. First off, no matter how poorly I know latin trap, I know the rules of American Football even less. So the halftime show was the only thing that meant anything that night as far as I was concerned. Second, for the first time in Super Bowl history, we had a Spanish-speaking, or rather singing, artist performing. Also, said artist happens to be the biggest musician in the world full stop, having just won a Grammy and topping the charts globally. Hence the momentous aspect of the performance.
Add to it the political undertones, of course: as he was picking his Grammy, Bad Bunny started his speech with a well-timed “ICE out”, and his Super Bowl performance was largely derided by the Trump crowd who supposedly preferred watching an alternative program led by the very white (trash) Kid Rock. The result was as expected by anyone remotely interested in contemporary music: Bad Bunny’s show was impeccable, well choreographed and full of Easter eggs relating to the history of and current plight in Puerto Rico, while the music itself was highly enjoyable, even for non-Salsa dancers (myself included). Meanwhile, that other show was neither broadcast live, nor performed live — nor good. Even Trump, who wrote so many insulting things about the Bad Bunny show, ended up watching it. Way to follow through.
Is this gonna change the face of the earth? Probably not. Racists and bigots are still ruling the US (for now), and latin pop is still a somewhat acquired taste. That said, it created a demonstrable boost for the entire genre, and Bad Bunny’s outspokenness does contribute to the discourse towards more moderate politics — and politicians. He was smart enough to end, not on a critical note like the opposing side does constantly, but rather on a hopeful one: “The only thing more powerful than hate is love”, said the giant screen at the end of his performance.
And that, my friends, is how it’s done. ¡Felicidades!