SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
The Seattle Seahawks trounced the New England Patriots to win Super Bowl 60 last night. But for millions of Americans, especially many Latinos, the main attraction was the halftime show. Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican pop superstar, delivered a performance centering a message of unity as well as pride in Latin American culture at a time when many Latinos feel under attack. NPR's Adrian Florido is here to talk about the show. Hey, Adrian.
ADRIAN FLORIDO, BYLINE: Hey, Scott.
DETROW: So Super Bowl halftime show - always a big event. Always the thing we're talking about the next day. But this was unique and historic.
FLORIDO: It was. It was the first time that the halftime show was not primarily performed in English. Bad Bunny, though he's a U.S. citizen, sings only in Spanish. And it was an exuberant 13 minutes. Like everything that Bad Bunny does, Scott, it was a celebration of Puerto Rico and its rhythms, deftly mixing reggaeton, plena, salsa.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BAD BUNNY: (Singing in Spanish).
FLORIDO: The elaborate staging was also a feast for the eyes. It took us through Puerto Rican sugarcane fields to a Puerto Rican house party to a New York City block party to a Latino couple's wedding. And the choreography and the dozens of dancers were also a lot of fun to watch. It was clearly a showcase of the beauty and vibrancy of Latino cultures. But it was also, Scott, dripping with symbolism and with political messaging.
DETROW: Right. This comes after a full year of something we talk about nearly every day on the show, massive deportation efforts. And at the Grammys last week, Bad Bunny made headlines shouting ICE out and criticizing the president's crackdown on illegal immigration.
FLORIDO: Yeah. He was not so explicitly political last night, but he did send very clear messages that he disagrees with the administration's mass deportation policies and its narrowing view of who gets to be American. Listen to the only words - some of the only words that Bad Bunny did speak in English last night.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BAD BUNNY: God bless America.
(CHEERING)
BAD BUNNY: (Inaudible) Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador...
FLORIDO: After saying God bless America, he named every country in the Americas from the south to north, ending with the United States and Canada and his homeland, Puerto Rico. Dancers around him held up the flags of each country. It was a broadly inclusive vision of the Americas. And there were also other symbols of protest, Scott. We saw street vendors selling tacos and shaved ice, the kinds of vendors who are cherished in many American cities but who today are being whisked away by immigration agents.
DETROW: Yeah. And that leads to the inevitable backlash to this show, right? Many conservatives...
FLORIDO: Yeah.
DETROW: ...Including President Trump, were not happy that the NFL picked Bad Bunny. And the conservative group Turning Point USA hosted an alternative halftime show.
FLORIDO: Yeah. In a post on Truth Social, President Trump last night called Bad Bunny's show an affront to the greatness of America. And he also wrote, quote, "nobody understands a word this guy is saying." The conservative counterprogram was a much more modest concert held in front of a small crowd. Some people were wearing MAGA hats. It was streamed online and on a few conservative channels. Singer Brantley Gilbert kicked it off by declaring this.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BRANTLEY GILBERT: This is real American.
FLORIDO: The show was not explicitly political, Scott, except for a few moments. After headliner Kid Rock performed, the audience began chanting the name of Charlie Kirk, the Turning Point founder who was assassinated last year.
DETROW: Two very different views of Americanism on display. But, look, in Bad Bunny's big performance, what else stood out to you, Adrian?
FLORIDO: Well, you know, at the very end, Bad Bunny held up a football and he pointed it directly at the camera. It was inscribed with the words, together we are America. And then he said, in Spanish...
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BAD BUNNY: (Speaking Spanish).
FLORIDO: We're still here.
DETROW: And that's not the only time he's used that phrase.
FLORIDO: That's right. It's something that he's said about Puerto Ricans resisting displacement on the island - we're still here. But last night, it took on a wider meaning given the government's efforts to expel immigrants. As Bad Bunny said this, the jumbo screen at Levi's Stadium flashed the words, the only thing more powerful than hate is love.
DETROW: That is NPR's Adrian Florido. Thank you so much.
FLORIDO: Thank you, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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