By Ariana Arias
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
Ashley Neyra was at a friend’s house in Montgomery Village, Maryland, on Sept. 28 when the song “Callaita” blasted from the television set.
In seconds, the room burst into cheers. Neyra and her friends were ecstatic.
Bad Bunny had just been chosen to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show.
“I was honestly so surprised,” said Neyra, a junior at the University of Maryland and the president of UMD’s chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. “With everything going on, part of me thought he wouldn’t perform. It’s always cool to see people who look like me get represented at events like these”
Puerto Rican artist Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, known as Bad Bunny, is considered the most popular Latin rapper of all time. He was the world’s most streamed artists for three years in a row from 2020 to 2022 and is often credited with bringing Spanish-language rap into mainstream culture.
The NFL’s decision to choose him as the headline act of the Super Bowl LX Halftime Show in February has sparked celebration, backlash and conversations about identity. While many of his fans are excited about the historic nature of Bad Bunny’s performance – it will be the first Super Bowl Halftime Show entirely in Spanish – conservatives have called the performer an anti-American figure whose performance will divide the country.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has threatened that federal immigration authorities will be “all over” the Super Bowl, and the conservative youth group started by the late Charlie Kirk, Turning Point USA, is organizing a counter halftime show that it says will emphasize faith and family.
The controversy surrounding Bad Bunny is reminiscent of the backlash that followed Kendrick Lamar’s performance at last year’s Super Bowl.
Despite the controversy, Bad Bunny fans say this performance is another major step for Latinos on one of the biggest stages nationwide, following the Shakira and Jennifer Lopez Super Bowl LIV halftime performance in 2020.
In Baltimore, where Latino communities continue to grow and be recognized, the performance is a symbol of all those things — and a point of hesitation for others.
Deysi Granados, a senior mass communication major at Towson University (TU) and vice president of La Voz Latina, said her family loves watching the Super Bowl and now feels a sense of pride that her American and Latina heritages is being recognized on football’s biggest stage.
“The Super Bowl has always been a way for us to bond,” Granados said. “So, seeing a Spanish-speaking artist like Bad Bunny on that same stage feels like both my cultures coming together.”
TU freshman Valeska Bonilla said when she learned that Bad Bunny was performing, she had a moment of feeling seen.
“For a Latino artist to play at such a big event that is catered to all Americans, it shows how we are able to have our voices be heard in the form of music,” Bonilla said.
Baltimore resident Edwin Hernandez said the Bad Bunny announcement is a great source of pride for the wider Latino community.
“I believe that having a Spanish speaking artist, let alone a native Puerto Rican artist, performing at the Super Bowl means a lot to many different people in our community,” Hernandez said.
Granados said, “A lot of people are open to it and enjoy the energy, even if they don’t understand every word. But with the political climate we’re in, there will always be people who react negatively.”
Jonathan Montalvo Roman, a Puerto Rican native and coordinator for the Center for Student Diversity at TU, said that while Bad Bunny’s performance is exciting for many, it also brings up tension.
“For some, hearing another language represents a loss of control over the narrative they’ve always dominated,” he said.
For Baltimore’s Latino community, this performance resonates beyond sports or music.
Angelo Solera, founder and executive director of Nuestras Raíces Inc. and Casa de la Cultura, said his reaction carried a range of emotions.
“When I first heard that Bad Bunny would be performing at the Super Bowl, my initial reaction was a mix of surprise, excitement, and pride. Surprise, because he had previously avoided U.S. tours due to immigration enforcement concerns,” Solera said.
While communities celebrate, political backlash follows. Former Trump adviser Corey Lewandowski called the NFL’s decision “so shameful,” claiming Bad Bunny “seems to hate America.”
He also confirmed that ICE agents will be present at the event, saying in The Athletic: “There is nowhere that you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you. We will apprehend you. We will put you in a detention facility, and we will deport you.”
Jared A. Ball, professor of Africana and Communication Studies at Morgan State University, said there is a contrast between celebration and enforcement that shows how power really works.
“They’ll celebrate your culture on TV,” Ball said. “But at the same time, they’ll flood the event with ICE and surveillance. That’s not inclusion — that’s control. It’s the illusion of being welcome while reminding you you’re being watched.”
Due to the current increased presence of ICE nationwide, Bad Bunny decided not to tour in the United States for “La Residencia Tour,” expressing concern that his shows may be a target. He instead focused on a 31-show concert in San Juan, Puerto Rico, followed by a tour in Latin America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
However, the opportunity for Bad Bunny to perform at the Super Bowl after deciding not to do his U.S. tour can be taken as a statement.
Solera said this is exactly what makes the moment so significant. “I see Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance as deeply symbolic — not just as entertainment, but as a moment of representation and resistance,” he said.
Bad Bunny responded directly to the backlash during his SNL monologue on Oct. 6, just days after the announcement.
Bad Bunny delivers opening monologue as host of “Saturday Night Live” on Oct. 6, 2025
“I’m very happy, and I think everyone is happy about it… even Fox News,” he said, making light of the controversy.
He then switched to Spanish, speaking directly to his fans about what this moment means for him and the community, and closed with a message to critics: “And if you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn.”
The announcement also reached the football community. Nigel Henderson, a junior and TU football player, admitted that his first reaction was “a little irritated.”
“I had no idea who he was,” Henderson said. “Upon my research, I was glad that the NFL chose a minority in the U.S. to represent their culture.”
Lucas Marks, a senior at TU and brother of Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity Inc., highlighted the importance of speaking up for one’s community.
“A US tour is one thing, but an opportunity to have your voice heard around the world is a powerful platform,” Marks said.
The announcement has also provoked strong reactions online.
One Instagram user, @teampuertoriccoo, wrote, “Y’all got a problem with a Puerto Rican man performing at the Super Bowl, but y’all don’t have a problem with going to Puerto Rico.”
Others expressed frustration. @sebastiancostes wrote, “A sport with fans being majority English speakers. Nice one NFL.”
Even with controversy, many view the performance as an important moment of representation.
“The predetermined notion of what a Latino is will be shattered for millions upon millions to see,” Marks said.
As visibility can feel powerful, it can also rarely shift power within itself.
“Representation isn’t power,” Ball said. “It can make people feel seen, but it doesn’t change who controls the platform or what happens after the lights go down.”
Henderson added: “People of his status have the power and possibility to change the way people see Latine culture. His performance should consist of messages that he wants people to know about his culture. This is a chance to educate people.”
Neyra emphasized how this moment can shape how communities are seen.
“Some people might discover his music for the first time and fall in love with it while others might despise Latinos for being in a place where they think Latinos are out of place, Neyra said. “Although for many people who may have that opinion, I think they often forget that we were one of the original people here. Latinos made America, too.”
Solera believes the impact goes beyond the Baltimore community.
“It sends a message that Latino artists, stories and voices deserve to be seen, heard, and honored at the highest levels,” Solera said. “It engages a massive, mainstream audience and forces cultural recognition — it challenges assumptions about who belongs in American cultural spaces.”
As Granados reflected on the meaning of this moment, she said that while it won’t solve everything, “it’s moments like these that challenge old narratives.”
“Bad Bunny standing on that stage isn’t just for him — it’s for all of us who grew up being told that our language and culture didn’t belong,” Granados said. “This time, we do.”