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Toñita

NFL / NBC / Via youtube.com

One of the most powerful facets of Benito's halftime performance was how inexplicably authentic it felt, how warm and genuine every moment seemed.

That's because … it was!

In the lyrics of 'NUEVAYoL' ('New York' in Puerto Rican pronunciation - more on that to follow), he describes having a un shot de cañita en casa de Toñita – 'a shot of cañita at Toñita's house'. 'Toñita's house' refers to the Caribbean Social Club in Brooklyn, run by the one and only Toñita!

Social clubs have been an important refuge and communal home base for generations of Latino immigrants and Puerto Ricans in New York. The Carribbean Social Club, opened in the 1970's, is now one of the last of it's kind. At 85, still working behind the bar, and refusing to sell to developers in the now wholly-gentrified neighbourhood, Toñita represents resistance through enduring maternal warmth and community connection.

And who is it we see serving Benito a shot of cañita during the Super Bowl? Toñita herself, of course!

A real wedding!

NFL / NBC / Via youtube.com

A wedding! What better way to make sure your message about love lands, despite a language barrier? But this wasn't just for show: this was a real, legal marriage, celebrated on stage at the Super Bowl.

Found in every culture, era and continent; a feeling of hope, connection and love that becomes instantly tangible.

Apparently, Benito gets invited to a lot of weddings. We can't imagine why! When this couple asked, Bad Bunny had an even better idea to help them mark their special occasion.

The nail salons et al.

NFL / NBC / Via youtube.com

As Benito walks through the sugar cane fields, he comes across many vendors - some selling cold coconuts, others tacos, drinks, and even gold and silver. Adding more weight to the already generously authentic and rich performance, these vendors were not actors. Like Toñita, all the vendors are real pillars of their local Latino communities. Even the cake the bride and groom cut on stage was from a real cake shop in New York - Valencia Bakery - and the same real cake is included in the video for NUEVAYoL!

But how about those nails? Benito himself is a big fan of nail art and often dons bright and sparkly nails. Nail salons are local community hubs accross the globe, a place to connect (and gossip!) as well as a source of employment for many migrants. It was refreshing to see their importance as art, as community, and as culture on full display. Bravo, Benito. 

Lady Gaga, that dress, and the flag

Mother Monster, AKA Lady Gaga, was a choice that many did not expect. But for fans of both artists, the combination and song choice makes perfect sense.

Lady Gaga has paved the way for artists of her (and younger) generations to break free from the moulds of main-stream popular music. She is the Bowie or the Prince of millienials. Iconic fashionista and bold supporter of the brave, Bad Bunny is a huge fan of hers. Benito's lofty (yet totally realised) ambition of breaking through to the world while singing exclusively in Spanish is exactly the kind of rebellion Gaga has always promoted. She stood while others sat, clapped and wept when artists such as he and Billie Eilish swept up their Grammys this year - a very proud Mother Monster.

The song she sung? A song she wrote with Bruno Mars, also Puerto Rican.

And, did you notice her dress? Well, how could you not…

Aside from its striking beauty, it also carries deep meaning. It was, of course from a Puerto Rican designer, and the colours were not accidental. The original flag of Puerto Rico had a light blue colour, rather than a dark blue. It was changed by the United States to fit better with their flag. For many years, it was illegal to display the original flag - and, of course, that original pale blue is the colour of Gaga's dress, with red and white floral details, and also the version of the flag that Bad Bunny eventually emerges with.

Our beloved Ricky, belting proudly in Spanish

NFL / NBC / Via youtube.com

It has been common knowledge that, for international artists to break into the US and international markets, at some point you have to switch to English. Maybe you can carry a little of your Spanglish – "Livin la vida loca" – but eventually you must conform. Shakira, Gloria Estefan, Enrique Iglesias, Marc Anthony - the list goes on.

For our dear Ricky Martin, who we've lovingly named a classroom after in our CBD centre, we can only imagine what belting this powerful ballad in Spanish at the Super Bowl must have meant. He told twitter afterwards he felt a "tsunami" of emotions that he would need time to process. 

He sung 'LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii' ('What happened to Hawaii'), probably the most openly politcal song on Bad Bunny's latest album. 

Quieren quitarme el río y también la playa
Quieren al barrio mío y que mi abuelita se vayan
No, no suelte' la bandera ni olvide' el lelolai
Que no quiero que hagan contigo lo que le pasó a Hawái
No, no suelte' la bandera ni olvide' el lelolai
Que no quiero que hagan contigo...

They want to take my river and my beach too
They want my neighborhood and grandma to leave
No, don't let go of the flag nor forget the lelolai
'Cause I don't want them to do to you what happened to Hawaii
No, don't let go of the flag nor forget the lelolai
'Cause I don't want them to do to you...

No one understood every word - yet the message was clear

NFL / NBC / Via youtube.com

Even if you have been speaking Spanish for quite a while (or all your life!), chances are, you didn't understand every single word Bad Bunny was singing - so please don't feel bad! Like a Rothko painting, you didn't need to understand explicitly to feel it's power.

Artists are rule-breakers, and Bad Bunny uses language however he likes. Grammar - pah! Consonants? Optional. Slang? ¡Claro! 

Disappearing consonants are common in informal speech, meaning words are sometimes 'half' said or even combined with the next word. In fact, we do this in English all the time (wanna, lemme, dunno…), so it makes sense that Spanish speakers would do the same.

Benito is also… Benito! Even if you understand the individual words in a lyric, sometimes you can't be exactly sure what he means. Artists! We love them. 

But don't worry! You don't have to understand every single word Bad Bunny is saying, or any other singer, to get a good idea of the overall message of a song. You can sense the mood, the flavour, the tension, the build, it doesn't really need subtitles.

This goes too for when you're in class or having a conversation with a Spanish speaker - do you need to understand every word to participate and understand? Absolutely not! Part of the skill of language acquisition is filling in those gaps yourself, with context, with previous knowledge, with feeling.

The source of the communication starts with the desire to connect. If we let go of our fears and lean in to the signals we are being given, messages become clear.

His message was crystal clear.

Resistance through joy
Identity with pride
Culture is celebration
Unity over division 
and the strongest power - comes from love.

Bad Bunny, we think the world now understands what you're saying. <3 

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