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Bad Bunny: 10 key facts about Super Bowl performer - from family to career
Bad Bunny's historic Super Bowl performance highlights his influence, music style, and political commentary. Here are some facts to know about him.
Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, is slated to perform in the Super Bowl halftime show tonight at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
The Puerto Rican rapper and musician has global fans and conservatives buzzing and tweaking alike. Bad Bunny's performance at the Super Bowl is anticipated to be one of the most historic, as a slew of questions, misconceptions and opinions revolve around the rapper. Besides, Bad Bunny is one of the most-streamed artists on the planet.
Here are 10 facts to know about the openly political rapper before his performance.
Read more: Why MAGA is boycotting Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show
Origin of his stage name
Long before Bad Bunny became a musical inspiration, Bad Bunny floated through his childhood wearing a bunny costume.
According to his 2025 interview with the Today show, the inspiration for "Bad Bunny" came from this costume and a picture of Benito wearing a bunny costume, holding a basket, and wearing a nonchalant expression.
He said, "It’s funny because I always say that I was mad that day on that picture. There’s no bad bunnies, I think. Even a bad bunny is gonna look like a good bunny. So it fit perfect on me because I could be bad, I could be good.
Bad Bunny's family
Bad Bunny's parents, Lysaurie Ocasio, a schoolteacher, and Tito Martínez, a truck worker, raised the singer in Vega Baja, Puerto Rico.
During an interview with Billboard in 2018, Bad Bunny raved about his culture and where he comes from. He also mentioned that his mother would play pop ballads and merengue, and he grew up listening to a lot of salsa music with his dad.
Benito considers his mom to be his biggest supporter and said that she was there before anyone knew his name.
A passionate lover of his language and place of origin
Bad Bunny once talked about his freedom to choose the style of his music and the language in which he makes music for his fans.
“I’m pleased that we are in a time where I don’t need to change anything about myself, not my musical style, not my language, not my culture to go far,” he said in 2021.
However, that being said, Bad Bunny also confirmed that he is open to singing in English one day.
Bad Bunny's decision to sing only in Spanish is a major source of controversy around his upcoming Super Bowl appearance.
Multiple Grammy award winner
Bad Bunny has received numerous Billboard Music Awards, six Grammy Awards, seventeen Latin Grammy Awards, and critical praise for his music and cultural impact over the course of his career.
Bad Bunny worked at a grocery store
In Vega Baja, Puerto Rico, Bad Bunny used to work as a grocery store employee at Econo while uploading music to Soundcloud and became the largest music sensation in the world.
Cultural influence and activism
Bad Bunny mixes pride and identity into his art by using his voice to allude to Puerto Rican social issues, culture, and tradition.
In his latest album, the music video of the song Nuevayol, released last year on the 4th of July, the Puerto Rican native openly criticizes President Donald Trump.
In one particularly noteworthy instance, a Puerto Rican flag supporting independence is placed atop the Statue of Liberty. The words "Juntos Somos Más Fuertes," which translates to "Together we are stronger," show on a blank screen.
Read more: America may be reaching peak Spanish
Bad Bunny's stance on ICE and immigration policies
Bad Bunny's tour last year omitted any dates in the United States out of concern that Immigration and Customs Enforcement might target his followers.
He said, “There was the issue of—like, ICE could be outside (my concert). And it’s something that we were talking about and are very concerned about.”
Songs he will perform at the Super Bowl halftime show
The trailer for Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show was released in January. The video shows the singer dancing to his hit song, "BAILE INoLVIDABLE" from his latest album, for which he won a Grammy in 2026.
Additional details about his performance are kept a secret from his fans.
Acting and SNL appearances
In addition to a musical career, Bad Bunny has branched out into acting, making appearances in well-known movies including Bullet Train (2022) and Happy Gilmore 2 (2025).
Additionally, Bad Bunny has hosted Saturday Night Live, showcasing their versatility across media. The most notable appearance of Bad Bunny includes a sketch of a Latin American family with Pedro Pascal and Marcello Hernandez.
