Mina Kimes weighs in on Bad Bunny's impact on American politics over performing at Super Bowl halftime

The NFL announced in September that Puerto Rican music superstar Bad Bunny will headline the Super Bowl halftime show in Northern California.

The Grammy-winning artist's selection has seemingly created controversy with many questioning his choice to sing in Spanish during the halftime festivities at Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 8 in Santa Clara, California.

However, NFL analyst Mina Kimes feels the global hitmaker's nomination is exactly what the community needs in the time of political unrest in the country.

"At this particular moment in American history, so many Latinos in this country are being targeted, harassed, families ripped apart. I live in Los Angeles and I'm seeing hard working people afraid to go to work and congregate.

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"But while this is happening, to have the world's biggest artist take the world's biggest stage is iitself, inherently radical more than maybe that's the wrong word. It's powerful, it shows people that they're still represented and they still have some power and I don't think that's insignificant."

Bad Bunny will have to bring his best to the show in February, as last year's event featuring Kendrick Lamar with guest SZA, set the record for the most-watched Super Bowl halftime show with 133.5 million viewers.

Bad Bunny's Super Bowl LX halftime show facing backlash from conservative group

Following the announcement, the Puerto Rican star addressed his fans with a NFL-themed message.

"What I’m feeling goes beyond myself,” Bad Bunny said. “It’s for those who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown… this is for my people, my culture, and our history."

His selection has raised questions from many quarters including President Donald Trump.

“I’ve never heard of him,” Trump said. “I don’t know who he is… I don’t know why they’re doing it. It’s, like, crazy. And then they blame it on some promoter they hired to pick up entertainment. I think it’s absolutely ridiculous.”

The NFL's decision has received backlash from conservative bodies with Turning Point USA announcing The All American Halftime Show to run opposite the Super Bowl LX halftime show at Levi's Stadium.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash