The Puerto Rican artist, world reggaeton star, is preparing to experience two historic moments: the Grammy Awards and the Super Bowl. But his success disturbs part of Trumpist America.
The 68th Grammy Awards, this Sunday in Los Angeles, promise to be one of the most diverse editions in history. Three heavyweights dominate: Kendrick Lamar for rap (9 nominations), Bad Bunny for reggaeton (6 nominations) and Lady Gaga for pop (7 nominations). All three are aiming for album of the year, which would be a first for each.
Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, aka Bad Bunny, embodies a meteoric rise. Discovered in 2016 on SoundCloud while working in a supermarket in Puerto Rico, this 31-year-old artist has propelled reggaeton and Latin trap to the top of the world charts. In a decade, he has become one of the most listened to artists in the world, breaking language barriers with albums entirely in Spanish.
In his latest album, Bad Bunny places great emphasis on traditional Puerto Rican rhythms and evokes the colonization of his native island. Committed to LGBT+ people and opposed to Donald Trump’s migration policy, he decided to avoid the United States on his 2025 tour to protect his fans from immigration police raids.
The anger of the Trumpists
Bad Sunny’s presence at the Super Bowl crystallizes tensions. Donald Trump’s supporters are protesting against his choice to sing in Spanish. “So the NFL doesn’t understand anything?“, said Sebastian Gorka, advisor to the American president.
Some also criticize its aesthetic which blurs gender codes. “Her choice to sing in Spanish clashes with a nationalist idea of who has the right to belong in the United States“, explains the storyteller Jorell Meléndez-Badillo.
(Re)read Bad Bunny, a proudly Puerto Rican artist
For a long time, Latin music was confined to specific categories. This year, the integration of thousands of new voters reflects a desire for diversification. The choice of Bad Bunny for the Super Bowl is not a misstep: the NFL “wants to become global”, recalls Jorell Meléndez-Badillo. The artist, popular in the United States and internationally, “draws the crowds” and checks all the boxes for an event with global reach.
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Bad Bunny during a concert in Mexico on December 10, 2025.
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AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo
In a country where more than 40 million people speak Spanish at home, Bad Bunny’s rise reflects a demographic reality.
A historic double meeting
Bad Bunny gets six nominations for his album “I should have taken more photos“, including Album of the Year. This is only the second time that a Spanish-language record has competed in this category, after its own album.”A Summer Without You” in 2022. A week after the Grammys, on February 8, he will perform the Super Bowl halftime show in front of tens of millions of viewers.
“His coronation would show the growing influence of Latin American cultures in the United States”
Lauron Kehrer, musicologist
Kendrick Lamar (9 nominations, 22 Grammys under his belt) is aiming for album of the year for “GNX” and competes for song of the year with “Luther” in collaboration with SZA. Lady Gaga (7 nominations, 14 Grammys) returned to electropop with “Mayhem“and his single”Abracadabra“.
Also in the running are Justin Bieber, Sabrina Carpenter, and several artists R&B like Leon Thomas and Olivia Dean. K-pop could win an award thanks to the film “K-Pop Demon Huntersthe Netflix.
Historically, the ceremony has been criticized for its conservatism. The Recording Academy, which awards the Grammys, added 3,800 new members to vote during the ceremony, half of whom are under 39 and 58% of whom are people of color.
