Bad Bunny

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About

Bad Bunny is the stage name of the Puerto Rican rapper and singer Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio. He is known internationally for his Latin trap and reggaeton music, rising to fame in 2016 with his song "Diles" and many collaborations with Latin artists like Farruko, Karol G, Ozuna, J Balvin and more during the next few years. He's also frequently the subject of memes online, such as the moment when he through a fan's phone in early 2023 that inspired numerous memes.

History

On June 8th, 2014, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio launched a YouTube^[1] channel to release some of his original music. Then, on Soundcloud in 2016, the singer's song “Diles” became a hit in Latin America. The collab song with Ozuna, Farruko, Arcangel and Ñengo Flow accumulated 974 million views on YouTube (as of January 2023).

After the song gained popularity, Bad Bunny was part of a number of successful singles and features, debuting his first album X 100PRE on December 2018. His debut reached No. 1 on Billboard's Top Latin Albums chart. Three years later the singer had the first all-Spanish album to launch at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, with the release of the album El Último Tour del Mundo on December 2020.^[3]

Reputation

Bad Bunny has been known as a political voice for Puerto Rico. For example, when protests in the region arose in 2019 to demand Governor Ricardo Rosselló’s ouster, the singer released the song “Afilando los Cuchillos” (Sharpening the Knives), with Puerto Rican artists Residente and iLe. He also used the music video of the song “El Apagón” (The Blackout) to share an 18-minute documentary about displacement and other injustices his home island is facing. The video, uploaded to YouTube^[7] on September 16th, 2022, earned 12 million views in five months (seen below).

Phone-Throwing Controversy

The singer faced some backlash in January 2023 after footage of him throwing a fan’s phone went viral over the holidays. The Twitter^[8] page @donfelixSPM shared the video on January 2nd, 2023, receiving 14 million views in four days.

The reggaeton singer did not apologize for the confrontation. Instead, in a now-deleted tweet, he said that the incident resulted from a “lack of respect” on the fan’s part, and explained his reaction.

Translated to English, Bad Bunny's tweet means: "The person who comes up to me to say hello, to tell me something or just to meet me, will always receive my attention and respect. Those who come to put a phone in my face, I will consider it for what it is, a lack of respect and I will treat it like one. #IDONTGIVEAFUCK."

A few days after the incident, the singer was spotted snatching some fans' phones in a club in the Dominican Republic. The video posted by Twitter^[9] account @PopBase has received 2.8 million views in one day.

Fashion

The Puerto Rico rapper is considered a fashion icon for the way he pushes boundaries and stereotypes.^[5] He has also become a reference when it comes to red carpets, trend accessories and collaborations with beloved brands. One example is the 2022 Met Gala red carpet in which Bad Bunny made his first debut wearing a Burberry Skirt and Beaded Updo, as seen in this clip reuploaded to Twitter^[10] by @playz.

Personal Life

Alongside music and fashion, the rapper also appeared in Hollywood productions like Bullet Train and Fast & Furious 9 and has also been cast in the 2024 Marvel movie "El Muerto,"^[6] a spin-off story from the Spider-Man universe.