Bad Bunny played the halftime show at the 2026 Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara on Feb. 8. San Jose City College students shared their thoughts and opinions on the show. 

Bad Bunny’s selection was already a controversial choice, and even more so after calling out Immigration and Customs Enforcement in his Grammy acceptance speech just days prior. Nevertheless, the Puerto Rican rapper’s halftime show amassed 128.2 million viewers, according to ESPN.

“…I think he was just trying to do his own thing,” said Joseph Shelton, a first-year communications major at SJCC. “[He was] just trying to show people that it doesn’t really matter what others think. Just do what you’re passionate about.”

The halftime show featured Bad Bunny’s Puerto Rican culture, his performance starting with him walking out of a sugar cane field while singing “Titi Me Pregunto.” Afterwards, the scene turned into a Latin neighborhood, with fruit stands, elderly men playing dominoes and women getting their nails done.

“It did bring me to tears,” said Leo McKenzie, a second-year communications major. “I have been living in San Jose since I was 15, a lot of my friends are Hispanic … it was nice to see the people I see everyday on a screen.”

The singer also brought out influential people within the Latin American Community. Among them was Victor Villa, founder of Villas Tacos Los Angeles, who made a post on his social media thanking the artist.

During his performance of “Nueva Yol”, Bad Bunny receives a drink from none other than Maria “Toñita” Antonia Cay. She owns Toñita’s Caribbean Social Club, which has been operating in New York City since the 1970s; he also mentioned her in the song.

“The thing that he did that was so beautiful, he’s putting pride into these people’s hearts,” said Qwavario Ford, a communications major.

“That’s what we need … I know me, growing up in a place where there were not a lot of people like me, I often felt like I needed to hide part of myself,” he continued. “So Bad Bunny doing that, showing up and saying like ‘This is who we are and I’m proud of that.’ That’s the biggest thing … inspiring the youth.”

Bad Bunny also brought out Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Ricky Martin to sing “Lo Que le Paso a Hawaii,” a song about colonialism and being displaced from one’s native land.

The music then transitioned to “El Apagon,” with dancers hanging from power lines, and Bad Bunny singing with a Puerto Rican flag in hand. “El  Apagon,” which translates to “the blackout,” is a song about the power failures in Puerto Rico. According to CNN, the power-grid in Puerto Rico had not been maintained for decades before Hurricane Maria destroyed it in 2017.

Arely Madrigal, a second-year medical assistance major who is Latina, said she enjoyed the performance. “They showed… the apagones … the things that are happening in Latin America.”

The most special moment in the performance, according to Madrigal, was at the end, when Bad Bunny said “God Bless America,” then went on to name the countries that make up North and South America.

“My favorite thing was the last part [when] he mentions all the countries.” Madrigal said.

The rapper’s message was clear. It was one of love and unity, as the words “The only thing stronger than hate, is love,” appeared on the video boards in the stadium.