Bad Bunny Became The First Latin Artist To Win Album Of The Year At The Grammys And Called Out ICE
“Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say: ICE out.”
Puerto Rican rapper and singer Bad Bunny, whose full name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, gave a powerful speech on inclusion and love, calling out ICE after he made history at the Grammys, winning Album of the Year with a full-Spanish album.
Bad Bunny’s “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS” (DTMF or “I Should Have Taken More Photos”) is the artist's sixth album.
The album is an homage to Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the US since 1898, with Puerto Ricans having the right to US citizenship, but lacking political participation rights such as voting in US presidential elections.
Across the album, Bad Bunny weaves in political themes, such as in the song “Lo que le pasó a Hawaii”, where he expresses his fear that Puerto Rico could be Americanized like Hawaii and lose its cultural identity while in “Turista”, he reflects on the emptiness that can come with mass tourism.
Meanwhile, In “LA MuDANZA,” Bad Bunny spoke about his proud heritage and his family’s history in Puerto Rico, recalling a time when the US criminalized Puerto Ricans for waving the Puerto Rican flag.
Bad Bunny also celebrates in his album everyday Puerto Rican culture, incorporating traditional elements of Puerto Rican music.
On Sunday, Feb. 1, Bad Bunny won three Grammy awards, including Album of the Year, Best Música Urbana Album and Best Global Music Performance with his song “EoO”, which pays tribute to “old school” reggaeton.
This is the first time a Latin artist and a Spanish-language album have taken the Grammys’ top prize.
Bad Bunny dedicated his win to people in Latin America and “all the people who had to leave their homeland, their country to follow their dreams.”
“Puerto Rico believe me when I say that we are bigger than 100 times 35,” he said, referring to the phrase that Puerto Rico’s may be small in size, but big in talent. “And there’s nothing we can’t do.”
During his speech for winning Best Música Urbana Album, Bad Bunny called out the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has been criticized for carrying out violent raids against immigration over recent days.
“Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say: ICE out.” he said. “We’re not savage, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.”
He also urged people to fight hate with love.
Bad Bunny is set to perform at the 2026 Super Bowl’s halftime show on Feb. 9, a decision that has received criticism mainly from far-right people, considering most of his songs are in Spanish.
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Sofia Hou
Cherry Mohamed
