In early October, Bad Bunny was revealed to be the performer at the Super Bowl halftime show. The Puerto Rican rapper and singer has brought Spanish music into the mainstream, having four songs on Spotify with over one billion streams each. The public, however, was split in their opinions on his performance.
A poll done by Quinnipiac University in Connecticut shows 53% of respondents approving the decision, while 29% do not support the decision. The other 24% did not have an opinion on the matter.
Republican figures specifically have spoken against the decision. In an interview with Newsmax’s Greg Kelly, Trump said that he found the decision “absolutely ridiculous.”
Fox News host, Tomi Lahren, also expressed her dissatisfaction, saying that Bad Bunny isn’t an “American artist,” despite Puerto Rico being a territory of the U.S.
However, many other figures have supported Bad Bunny, including those in the Puerto Rican community. A Puerto Rican artist and art teacher in Philadelphia told CBS, “Not only is Bad Bunny going to be on a platform, but my culture is going to be on the biggest platforms,” explaining the significance of the decision for their community.
Adding fuel to the debate, the punk-rock group Green Day was revealed as one of the opening performers for the Super Bowl. Punk rock has always been a genre used to express deeper values, often including political undertones. Green Day is no exception, as much of their music has been viewed as politically charged.
The band has always been against the conservative agenda, something visible in their songs from as early as 2004, including “Holiday.” The anti-war song includes a somewhat satirical bridge that has lyrics depicting a representative going against anti-war messages, saying “pulverize the Eiffel Towers who criticize your government.”
The group has also spoken out against Donald Trump’s administration specifically, through a lyric change of their song “American Idiot.” They performed at Dick Clarke’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve at the end of 2023, and changed the lyrics from “not a part of your redneck agenda” to “not a part of your MAGA agenda.”
Although President Trump has not yet spoken about their involvement in the Super Bowl, many Republicans online are disappointed with the decision, feeling like the choice of performers was politically charged.
As the Super Bowl approaches and online discourse continues, the question still remains: are big performances such as the Super Bowl just a time for everyone to enjoy music, or an opportunity to make a larger political statement?
