After joking that English speakers had “four months” to learn Spanish for his Super Bowl 60 halftime show during his Saturday Night Live hosting gig, Bad Bunny insisted the performance is going to be an all-inclusive party.
“They don’t even have to learn Spanish,” the rapper, 31, said Thursday, February 5, during theApple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Press Conference. “It’s better they learn to dance. There’s no better dance than the one that comes from the heart. That’s the only thing that they need to worry about.”
He added, “I just want people to have fun.”
Bad Bunny also became emotional during Thursday’s press conference when discussing his mother, Lysaurie Ocasio.
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold gave his honest assessment of Bad Bunny being chosen as Super Bowl 60 halftime performer amid a swirl of conversation about the rapper’s selection. “It’s unbelievable,” Darnold, 28, said at Super Bowl Opening Night on Monday, February 2. “I love his music. It’s great to have him perform at the […]
“She believed in me, and I’m not talking about my music career,” Bad Bunny said. “I’m just talking about everything. She believed in me as a person, as a human. She believed in my decisions, in my opinions, in my taste, in my choices.”
While fighting back tears, he added, “She believed I could be a good person. I think that it was got me here, you know?”
Bad Bunny (real name Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) was announced as this year’s headline performer in September 2025, with an Instagram announcement showing him perched on a goal post. He noted that performing during football’s biggest night was an honor.
“What I’m feeling goes beyond myself,” Bad Bunny said in a statement at the time. “It’s for those who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown … this is for my people, my culture and our history. Ve y dile a tu abuela, que seremos el HALFTIME SHOW DEL SUPER BOWL.”
The decision has since received mixed reactions from public figures, fans and NFL players alike. President Donald Trump, for one, called the choice “absolutely ridiculous.”
“I’ve never heard of him,” Trump, 79, said during an interview with Newsmax in October 2025. “I don’t know who he is. I don’t know why they’re doing it. It’s, like, crazy.”
In a survey released by The Athletic on Monday, February 2, 41.4 percent of NFL players said they didn’t “like” Bad Bunny being selected as the performer.
“I don’t even know who Bad Bunny is,” an anonymous offensive NFC player said. “I always think it should be an American. I think they’re trying too hard with this international stuff.”
Jennifer Lopez has no time for the backlash surrounding Bad Bunny’s upcoming Super Bowl halftime show performance. Lopez, 56, was asked about the controversy during a Monday, October 6, interview on the Today show and said she was so excited for the Grammy winner’s set. “I think he’s about to blow everybody’s mind,” Lopez gushed. […]
A separate player, however, had a different take. “I’ve heard his music obviously, but I don’t speak Spanish so I’m not a big fan,” an NFC defensive player said. “But I do think it’s cool to have him, because America is based on diversity. America was built on immigration. So I feel like having him just furthers that American dream. I like it. I like the choice.”
Bad Bunny is from Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States — which he gave a shout-out to when he won Album of the Year at the 2026 Grammy Awards on Sunday, February 1. (Bad Bunny took home the award for his Debí Tirar Más Fotos album.)
“There is nothing that exists that we can’t accomplish. Thank God, thank you to the Academy, and thank you to all the people who have believed in me throughout my career,” he said. “To all the people who worked on this album. Thank you, Mami, for giving birth to me in Puerto Rico. I love you!”
Bad Bunny also shared a message in English, before continuing in Spanish. “I want to dedicate this award to all the people who had to leave their homeland, their country, to follow their dreams,” he said.
“For all the people who have lost a loved one and even then have had to continue moving forward and continue with so much strength, this award is for you all. Thank you for so much love. I love you,” he concluded. “To all the Latinos in the entire world, and all the artists who came before and deserved to be on this stage picking up this award, thank you very much.”
