As I am listening to Bad Bunny's new album "Un Verano Sin Ti", I can not help but think how much influence this man has on the Latino Culture and on society in general. Not only has he broken barriers, and creates amazing music that makes any Latine want to get up and dance, but he writes music that sheds light on social issues. Bad Bunny or Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, started off as a Puerto Rican underground Latin Trap Artist and rose to fame, with multiple hits coming out in 2016-2017, the main ones being"Diles" and "Soy peor". These hits led him to collab with big-name artists like reggaeton star Daddy Yankee, Enrique Iglesias, Becky G, Cardi B, J Balvin, Karol G, Prince Royce, Drake, Marc Anthony, Sech, El Alfa, and many more.
According to the New York times, since his official debut in 2018, he has become a global superstar, they state, "He released two LPs in 2020, including “El Último Tour Del Mundo,” the first fully Spanish-language album to hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. He’s been the most streamed artist on Spotify two years in a row"(Herrera, 2022). Not only this but he sold out a whole US and international tour in hours back in 2021. I may have been one of the fans on the ticket master site for hours, but that is a story for later :P Bad Bunny has emphasized how he went from bagging groceries to being known as a fashion and music icon leading to his invite to the 2022 Met Gala. He researched a perfect outfit that fit the "Gilded Age" of his home country Puerto Rico. He is known to push barriers in fashion by not confining himself to gender norms and expectations. This summer he will make his film debut in "Bullet Train" an action movie with Brad Pitt and he recently just announced he will be the main character in one of the future movies of the marvel franchise where he portrays a Latino anti-hero.
He recently came out with his newest summer album called "Un Verano Sin Ti", which has a different perspective and style. He is known for his reggaeton and Latin trap, but this seems to be a lot easier to digest. By this I mean he has many different genres that blend perfectly. He has reggaeton, merengue, mabma, and a lot of Caribbean rhythms. What I really enjoy about his music is how he expresses his Latinidad and stays true to himself and his beliefs. For example, in his song Andrea, he relates it to a specific case of gender-based violence in Puerto Rico. In his 2018 hit called Estamos Bien, he dedicated the song to the victims of Hurricane Maria, where thousands died, and yet a year after the disaster people are still facing the aftermath of the hurricane. He emphasized that many still did not have electricity or the necessary resources to survive.
I admire Bad Bunny's resilience, dedication, and love for all Latines. His music builds community for Latines and expresses the need to highlight certain social issues. His fame shows how he broke barriers by singing purely in Spanish something that is unknown in the music market. Singers like Selena the Mexican American singer who rose to fame in the 80s had to sing in English to get more mainstream. This is the reality of BIPOC singers, who have to crossover in the English market to get more exposure. Being the first-gen daughter of immigrants his music has helped break generational barriers, which makes me so happy. You can tell he does what he does because he enjoys it and is simply having fun with it. His humility and need for Spanish speakers to be able to see someone like them on the big stage are shown through his music. This makes him different then other Latino artists due to the influence he has on Latino culture and on myself, even if I am just a little Mexican girl in a small city in California.
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