It feels like everyone is talking about it. Rent Free simply could not skip over the pop culture phenomenon that was this year’s Super Bowl halftime show. Or, as many of us are calling it, the “Benito Bowl.”
I would fail as a Latina journalist if I were to not discuss the Puerto Rican megastar, whose original name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio. He’s not just a Latino artist. He’s revived reggaeton and expanded the genre’s popularity in tremendous ways. I never doubted his ability to shock the nation with a spectacular performance, but even I was impressed by the production — he did not just sing, he told a story.
Bad Bunny broke out in 2016. If you spend any time on TikTok nowadays, you’ll know it really was the best year to be alive. Whether you consider his feature on “Diles” alongside Arcángel and Ozuna or “Soy Peor” to be his first big hit, 2016 was when many of us learned of the Puerto Rican singer.
Fast forward a decade later, he’s not just a Latino star. He is one of the biggest artists in the world.
If you somehow managed to avoid the Bad Bunny phenomenon before the Super Bowl, maybe you were confused about the halftime pick. That’s fine. I tend to listen to the same few artists on repeat.
I just ask that people stop questioning his American value or impact. After Sunday, I think it’s clear: He was more than qualified to entertain America with his performance, reaching an average of 128.2 million people, whereas Super Bowl LX generated an average of 124.9 viewers.
In 2025, Bad Bunny surpassed Taylor Swift as Spotify’s top global artist with almost 20 billion streams. So, if you think Swifites go hard, just imagine how devoted “Los Conejos” can be. The way young girls are obsessed with Taylor Swift and sell out stadiums is very similar to the loyalty many — myself included — feel about Benito.
In a year that saw Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids targeting Latino communities across the United States, Benito won a Grammy for Album of the Year with DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, making history as the first artist to win the category with an entirely Spanish-sung album.
In his acceptance speech, he dedicated the award to immigrants who “leave their home, land their country to follow their dreams.” Because we are living through a time with such strong, hateful anti-immigrant rhetoric, it’s beyond moving to see someone remind people what immigrants sacrifice in coming here. They are dreamers.
He continued to challenge hateful narratives and prejudices during his Super Bowl performance. He chose to inspire people and remind us there is still great good in the world. We can all be the love we are in desperate need of right now.
“Que rico es ser latino.” It’s delightful to be Latino. That was the first line in his performance. There was no ambiguity in his intentions in taking the stage. He uplifted the Latino community and showed all the beautiful aspects of our rich culture.
We are a culture that fervently celebrates weddings with the entirety of our extended family. We all know what it’s like to fall asleep on two chairs at a party because our parents refused to leave. We love to celebrate our loved ones and dance all night until 4 or 5 a.m. At one of the most “American” events of the year, he showed just about everything that makes us Latinos.
Was it what I imagined? Truthfully, no. When he teased “Gasolina,” I was convinced Daddy Yankee would appear. Instead, we got Ricky Martin and Lady Gaga as surprise guests. But am I complaining? No.
He put on a show with us and for us. He brought, what felt like, as many Latinos as possible onto the country’s largest stage — Colombian singer Karol G, Chilean American actor Pedro Pascal, Puerto Rican boxer Xander Zayas and Mexican boxer Emiliano Vargas, the list goes on. And we can’t forget the real-life couple who tied the knot during his performance, Thomas “Tommy” Wolter and Eleisa “Elli” Aparicio.
I know many of us will remember his 13-minute performance as an affirming and bold gift to the Latino community. On social media, I saw dishwashers and line cooks step out of their kitchens to sneak a peek of his performance. I turned on the Super Bowl for the first time this year. If you didn’t see his halftime show, but want a reminder of what love can look like in our country, it’s not too late to become a Benito fan.
Arlette Correa is a Medill sophomore and author of “Rent Free.” She can be contacted at [email protected]. If you would like to respond publicly to this op-ed, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected]. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern.
