At Puerto Rican trap star Bad Bunny’s fiery main stage Coachella set on Sunday (April 14), some fans donned fuzzy bunny ears, some raised flags from across Latin America and others threw their pinkies to the air in Bad Bunny’s trademark gesture. But almost everyone was going positively nuts.
“I want to know where the Latinos are!” Bad Bunny roared in Spanish, kicking off a versatile show that had fans in their feelings one moment and dancing through it the next.
The 25-year-old born Benito Ocasio has catapulted to mainstream fame over the past year, thanks to hit collaborations like his “Te Bote” remix with Ozuna and Nicky Jam and “MIA” with Drake, along with his own masterful album X100PRE, released last December. His set was part of a seemingly unprecedented number of Latin acts on this year’s Coachella roster, including J Balvin and Spanish singer Rosalía — and among dozens of performers, the global group had some of the most elaborate and dazzling performances of the weekend.
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Wearing a rainbow Louis Vuitton outfit and visor-like sunglasses, “el conejo malo” channeled emotion from the get-go, opening with guitar-strumming breakup track “Ni Bien, Ni Mal.” A few tracks later, he reminded fans that everything would be alright with “Estamos Bien” (or “We’re Good”), the bright, melodic anthem he dedicated to victims of last year’s Hurricane Maria in his native Puerto Rico.
During the punk-tinged “Tenemos Que Hablar,” the stage’s screens filled with band posters for Blink-182, Fugazi, Linkin Park and more of Bad Bunny’s rock influences. And between his rowdier, beat-switching trap hits (like “La Romana” and “200 Mph”), he serenaded the crowd with several ballads, from declaration of independence “Solo De Mi” to heartbreaking piano-led throwback “Amorfoda.”
He even brought out collaborator and close friend J Balvin to perform “Tu Sensualidad” and the smash “I Like It,” and the two shared a heartening bromance onstage, hugging and fist-bumping between verses. In all, the set was just as wide-ranging and explosive as X100PRE itself.
“For me it is very big to be here,” Bad Bunny said in Spanish before treading offstage. “I feel very happy, very grateful to all of you. I’m very proud of what I represent, of the Latino community that has come far speaking the language they speak in my country.”