September 29, 2025 • 35 mins
The reaction has been swift and severe following the NFL’s announcement that 3 time Grammy winning Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny will be headlining next year’s Super Bowl Halftime show. Amy and T.J. go over Bad Bunny’s anti ICE statements that have many folks riled up, but also point to the unbelievable hate and ignorance that is being hurled at him and the NFL. We know YOU know, but just for the record, Puerto Ricans are Americans (and therefore cannot be deported!)
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey there, folks, it is Monday, September twenty ninety and
if you want to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show,
you bet a ah blah some long glace And with that,
welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ. What the
actual hell rolls? I said it. As soon as they
said bad Bunny. I had half a second that I
was excited, and then we immediately went, oh God, here
(00:25):
we go.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
There is a massive uproar specifically among the MAGA community.
And I don't want to say conservatives, because not all
conservatives are on board with this. It is very specific
to some people within the far right, the MAGA group
that are extremely upset about bad Bunny.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
We know that was coming. We knew that, we saw
this coming. This is not just an artist who is
a Puerto Rican. This is a guy who, oh what
is it? Ninety five percent of his songs are not
in English.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Correct, but you know them at least if you listen
to music. You know then because his music is everywhere
and he has been wildly successful at bringing in people
from all different types of ethnicities. And regardless of what
actual language you speak, music is universal, is it not?
(01:20):
And so he is one of those artists. Everyone runs
on the dance floor when his music comes on.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Period, So why so here we go? All right, super
Bowl halftime performer is announced. This is actually earlier than
they have done in years past. We used to cover this,
and cover this, and cover this, and always wait. Sometimes
it has been as late as a December that we
have gotten were now Jay Z and Rock Nation his
company has been in charge of doing the Super Bowl
halftime show, producing it for the past at least five.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
But since twenty nineteen, I believe that's when they contracted him.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
So he's been doing it. And quite frankly, yes, there
has has there been a white person to performs since
to jay Z. Now there has not been a white artist. Okay, fine,
we'll get into all the artists who were before him
in just a second. But robes this guy, bad Bunny.
The one of the most streamed artists on the planet,
(02:13):
one of the most successful artists on the planet. The
only competition he really has streaming wise might be Taylor
Taylor Swift. A few years ago it might have been Drake,
but she is his only competition. If an artist that big,
this is a no brainer. Well, yeah, he's one of
the biggest stars in music. Of course he should have
this stage. Why is that not the end of it?
Speaker 2 (02:33):
So that's where my head was, because yes, I feel
so naive now because you were very quick to say,
uh oh, this is not going to be good, and
I naively thought, why this is so cool? This is
an not just an up and coming artist. And sure
maybe if you're of a certain age and you have
very specific music tastes, you might not have heard his music.
(02:53):
I find that hard to believe. But okay, let's just
say you don't know who he is. How cool that
someone who has just rallied the world now gets a spotlight,
a national spotlight at the greatest sporting event in all
of the United States. I would say that's fair to say.
The super Bowl is the biggest sporting event of the
year in this country, period, biggest.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
Event every year in the world. Most watch this is it,
this is happening, This guy gets it, and obviously, I say, obviously, Well,
maybe it is obvious to people. There are some that
are upset that the country is becoming too diverse, that
there is a majority minority. Now we have seen plenty
of folks want to kind of DEI scrub the country
(03:36):
to a certain degree, and that's coming out of the administration.
So with that as your backdrop, Now, football American sport,
biggest game American culture. There is there anything more American
than the Super Bowl.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
No, and the folks who are upset point to the
fact that most of his songs are not in English,
that he does dress in a gender bending way. He
has been pictured many times in dresses, and they're throwing
all those pictures up there. His face has been bejeweled
with rhinestones and pearls, and he's worn makeup. And so
(04:11):
they're now saying men are under attack. White people are
under attack. You know, English speaking songs are under attack.
You know, they wanted Taylor, they wanted Dolly. There were
all sorts of people saying, we thought these people might
get a chance.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
I'd be okay with them too. Yes, I have no
problem with diversities. Now, if you all let's start, I
guess let's start with the basics. And we have comments,
and you plucked plenty, and some of them are you
can't believe what you're reading. But we need to start
with this robes.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
Just some facts his credentials before we get into his.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Credentials, can we get into his citizenship?
Speaker 2 (04:48):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (04:48):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
And it's so funny because I actually didn't think this
was necessary until I started reading the comments, and I
started reading them to you, and I said, do people
not think he's American? He is Puerto Rican? Puerto Ricana.
Puerto Rico is a US territory. Puerto Ricans are American citizens,
and in fact, they have right to be upset because
(05:09):
they don't have representation in Congress, and yet they're still
subject to and guaranteed rights as citizens of the United
States of America. If anyone has traveled to Puerto Rico,
which we have had the amazing opportunity to do, so,
you don't have to bring your passport because once again,
(05:29):
you're on American soil when you're in Puerto Rico. Period.
Let's clear that up.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
But there is a whole host of comments you can
find about deporting the guy, or denying him.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
A visa, entrigue, arresting him in the middle, we'll get
I think it's more funny just to read what people wrote,
because but my jaw dropped and then it was just
one after the other. I put three examples in just
to give you the diversity of the ignorance. But it's
wild and hurling insults. They're actually showcasing their ignorance.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Okay, okay, so let's go back. You said Bad Bunny.
You had to have heard the name at this point,
and even if you're not, fine, here's an opportunity to
learn something. We and we'll full disclosure here. We don't
have Bad Bunny constantly streaming on our playlist. He is
not one of our necessarily top artists we listen to. However,
(06:24):
we got plenty of songs of his that you hear him.
I was like, oh, I didn't realize that was Bad Bunny.
Oh I didn't realize it was him. The guy is
a phenomenal artist, now you can this is not just
us being subjective. He has a resume and credentials to
back up. Why at thirty one years old, he just
did a multi hundred million dollar residency in Puerto Rico.
(06:49):
This guy is music right now. Of course he should be.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
And I love that he is going to potentially even
bring a new set of fans who might not have
watched the Super Bowl to the game itself. So how
cool is that that we can have more eyes and
more fans of a pastime that US Americans love and
present parties included. You're huge football fans, and this guy is.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
He puts on extravagant show. It's so it's going to
be special to watch. And we told you he's one
of the most streamed artists on the planet. But get this,
he is the only artist to do this. He went
back to back to back years as the number one
most streamed artists on Spotify. There is not another artist
on the planet who's done that.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Not even Taylor Sweat, not even her. He's the only
artist to ever have a number one album on Billboard
Charts in Spanish.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
That is unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (07:39):
Right there you go. Because music translates. Music is a
universal language. That is why so many of us love music,
because you don't have to know even what the lyrics
are or what the words. We hell half the song
sung in English. These days, I don't even know what
the lyrics are, but I like the song. I have
to look them up. He's a three time Grammy winner.
(08:00):
He's the first person to have a Spanish language album
nominated for a Grammy for Album of the Year.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
That is incredible. That is the most important category. At
the Grammys. This wasn't a Latin Grammy here.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Look, we're seeing it at the Oscars too, where we
see foreign films actually being up for Best Picture. And
that's cool too, that we're all able to share in
the artistry and recognize good shit when we hear it
or see it, regardless of what country actually produces it
or what language it's in. And you got anyone who
loves movies knows that foreign films are like, they're not
any They're not any less valued because they're not in English.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
What do I remember Roma?
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Yeah, I think so, I believe that did nodding. And
how about the Korean the Korean horror movie thank You exactly.
So I'm just saying this translates to different genres of art.
And this isn't the first time. Why is this so
shocking to people? I don't get it now. He actually
already made a halftime Super Bowl appearance. He showed up.
(09:00):
Oh my gosh, I love the Jaelo Shakira halftime show.
That was in twenty twenty. That was jay Z's first
yes yes, because he took over after twenty nineteen, which
was Maroon five. So the first one was Jaylo and Shakira.
I loved that performance, and Bad Bunny made an appearance.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
So again, it's gonna be interesting when we go through
and we read who the performers have been before and
after jay Z took over. That's interesting to see.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
But and being pointed out quite heavily.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
And I'm okay with that, and we will discuss that.
But I am okay. I feel think about the people
of Puerto Rico, how they must feel to know their
guy is going to be on this stage. That's a
really proud moment for Puerto Rico, as it should be,
and it's the pride and what they're going to feel.
And since I immediately so I don't even think I had
(09:51):
fifteen seconds to celebrate him being named. When we saw
it this morning, it was, oh God, we gotta go
through that. We gotta go through this fight. It's gonna
be nasty, it's going to be ugly. It's September. We
got to do this and through next February and then
the show is gonna happen. What you're gonna happen. You
have Boycott's, You're gonna have people going after the NFL.
You've already seen people canceling subscriptions and things like that.
(10:13):
And you brought up this point and not said, damn,
do we even say that out loud? But what we're
talking about here, given all that we've seen, good God,
the super Bowl is already a one of the most
what do they call them a level They call it
super Bowl level security, but they call it as a
(10:34):
targeted event. They treat it as if it's like terrorist
I'm scar.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
In this climate. I have a feeling he has to
be now you know, people lawyer up in some avenues.
He's gonna have to beef up his security. I mean,
it makes me nervous just where we are in this
world and what we're seeing. It feels like week after
week after week. Yes, and the.
Speaker 1 (10:56):
Spanish language songs.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Well, it's also some of his comments that he's made
about ice and about Trump and the fact that he look,
he's got this next big tour. He's announced it begins
at the end of this year, goes through the summer,
and he announced that he is not making any tour
stops in the United States out of fear that his fans,
some of his fans might be targeted by ice raids.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Now coming from again, this is a guy who's from
Puerto Rico. This is a guy who has been I
think you could call him an activist. He's been very
vocal about what he has seen happening to I mean
folks he fills a kinship with, and he has spoken out.
That's okay. Now, folks will interpret the things he's saying
as anti Ice, therefore anti government and anti Trump.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
But that doesn't mean he's anti American. That's the whole
premise by which America stands. On the fact that we
get to say those things and still live freely, the
fact that we get to express our opinions even when
they're not popular or don't necessarily sit well with everyone.
That's what makes America America. Please, please, please, let's not
(12:06):
forget that.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
But we have. It seems in these debates so often
there's only one type of America that some people think
that should be, and it's got to be all white
all the time. And any attempt to be diverse, any
attempt to inject diversity of some kind or a culture
outside of what some feel is good all American culture
(12:28):
is a problem.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
We're a melting pot. We just have forgotten that. Have
we forgotten that? What did you say, if it ain't white,
it ain't right.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
That's what the arguments have been. There's no other argument. Okay,
he shouldn't be there because he sings in Spanish. Okay,
that is that? Really it? Because America shouldn't be that,
you should only have one. That's when we there's some
artists that have done halftime shows. I don't like their music.
I'm not going crazy about it. Okay, I don't like
(12:55):
your music. This is a thing where it seems like
people think so much of the country once again, is
being taken from them. Their position, their majority position, feels
like it's being taken. So it's not even about the
artists and don't like his music. It feels like some
kind of to them, an affront, a political statement, a
direct insult and attack on the America they want to see.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
That is absolutely what's going on. So I have to say,
I loved this. Let's let's let's make a positive beat here.
Bad Bunny his statement that he made. I loved it
after he was announced. I just thought it was sweet
and full of just passion and just really it was heartfelt.
Bad Bunny said this what I'm feeling goes beyond myself.
(13:37):
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.
And then he went on, I won't try it in
Spanish to basically say, go tell your grandmother, we will
be the super Bowl halftime show. Very cute he said it,
and he wrote it in Spanish.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
And the announcement that video they made that was he
didn't speak in the video announcing it.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Showed him you didn't know where, but it was beautiful.
There was a beach around him and as the camera
pulls out you see he's sitting on a goalpost. It
was really cool.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
So our argument here it's not necessarily in favor of
or against. We're not is not this side or that
we just we sit here as Americans, and their's space
for Bad Bunny and all of his fans to actually
(14:30):
be a part of America. We understand the problem that
some people have there should not be And I argue
as well, we've talked about this because we've seen the
attack in Dallas on the ice facility, where we talk
about anti ice rhetoric, there is some of it out there.
These are guys just doing their jobs. California wants them
to take their mask off when they're doing their job,
and all these things. It's serious. People were taking shots
(14:53):
at ICE agents. Now when you put that or take
that into account, I could see how people who are
good meaning folks, yes, who just know ICE agents are
doing their job, or say, hey, these folks are some
of these folks are in the country illegally and they
are just doing their job and this is what should
be done. So to hear anti ice rhetoric, I could
(15:14):
see why they might have a problem.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
So one of the several things are being put up
online and one of them as recently as June where
Bad Bunny did record and post a video. He was
taking video on his cell phone of ICE agents doing
their job, and he was they were there in Puerto Rico,
and he just said, look at those mother efforts in
these cars raft fours. They're here in Pontezuela, sons of
(15:38):
bees instead of leaving the people alone and working there.
So he was taking video of ICE agents and was
cursing and upset that they were targeting and going after
Hispanic folks.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Is there a space for both? Is there a space
for us to have a debate that somebody can see
those raids happening and go, yes, they are doing their jobs,
they are doing a good job, and this is for
the betterment of the country. That could be somebody on
the other side looking at it with a different life
experience and legitimately be upset and speak about being upset
and maybe say something they wish they hadn't said. Whatever,
(16:12):
But it's their space for that debate without him being
anti American and the other side being evil as well.
That's okay about that debate, that's not the one happening.
It is ugly, it is nasty, and when we come back,
we are going to let you hear exactly how ugly
and nasty it is. Gotten And it hadn't even been
(16:32):
twenty four hours yet.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Folks, welcome back to this edition of Amy and TJ.
We are talking about the NFL's decision to unnounce, and
it was exciting for about thirty seconds that Bad Bunny
(16:56):
would be the halftime show of this next year's Super Bowl,
and there was an immediate celebration. Bad Bunny put out
a statement and sure his followers and fans, the millions
of them, all celebrated, but very quickly. We heard from
the other side a lot of people upset that this
(17:17):
particular artist was chosen to perform in this year's Super
Bowl for a number of reasons. And let me just
let them tell you, because they can say it better
than I can. So I saw Benny Johnson three point
nine million followers. This is what he tweeted almost immediately.
(17:38):
This is Bad Bunny. He was just announced as the
twenty twenty six Super Bowl halftime show. Massive trumpeter, anti
ice activist, no songs in English. He even canceled his
entire US tour for this reason. And then he quoted
bad Bunny saying ething ice could be outside my concert
and it's something that we were talking about and very
concerned about. Benny Johnson goes on to say the NFL
(18:00):
is self destructing year after year, and then he shows
two pictures of Bad Bunny looking feminine with pearls and rhymestones.
Was the point of that, Yeah, So he just said that.
Then he let all of his followers just jump in.
So one follower, is this a joke? A dude calls
himself Bad Bunny. Let me guess his music is everywhere.
(18:22):
He's won ten Grammys and he's the hottest performer of
a generation, same as the last guy I never heard of.
He's referring to Kendrick Lamar.
Speaker 1 (18:30):
Obviously take that look for a second. Let's do this robes.
It is, why do people think people aren't deserving of
a platform because that person isn't in your circle?
Speaker 2 (18:45):
So listen to this.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
What you haven't heard of him?
Speaker 2 (18:48):
Yeah, what you're just saying. His next and last line
is this, No, it's gonna speak right to what you
just said. So then he goes on to say, my
question is do they even look in the stands or
do they only go by who is in this suite?
Which begs another question, who are the weirdos in the suites?
So he does want this person, the performer, to reflect
(19:08):
and look like and be a part of what he
considers the football fan in the seats.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
What's the viewership of the super Bowl? There were you
a hundred something millions? Hundred Okay, yeah, there's more than
just the people in the stands. Again, we're trying to
leave space and respect people's opinions. If you don't like
him as a performer, if you don't want him there.
The next thing is what's important to me, why don't
you want him there?
Speaker 2 (19:33):
So listen to this one. This will be fearless, funny enough.
Is this person's name on Twitter? Or X says this?
So the NFL, already hemorrhaging credibility with endless political pandering,
just picked bad Bunny for the twenty twenty six halftime show,
a performer who who openly hates Trump, rails against ice,
and doesn't even sing in English translation. The league chose
(19:55):
a man who openly disrespects half the country and its
laws to headline the biggest American sports stage. Forget unity,
forget broad appeal, forget football culture. The NFL now treats
the Super Bowl like a diversity marketing seminar, where entertainment
value comes second to political symbolism. This isn't about music.
(20:15):
It's about the league bending the knee to cultural gatekeeper,
to cultural gatekeepers, while alienating the very fans who built
its empire.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
Are we still there with cultural gatekeepers? It seems like
Trump is winning all those cultural war Everybody's scared to
death of this guy, Like I'm a little surprised, like
of all people to put on stage, you know, this
is going to piss off Donald Trump. Of course it is,
so I wonder what the contract states. Does jay Z
have to get the blessing? Yes of Roger Goodett.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
Everything I have read says yes, the NFL has to
sign off on it. So Roger Goodell did. Now I'm
going to read these three next ones in a row,
because this was what we referenced before we went to
break at the top of the episode about people who
literally don't understand the Puerto Rico is America. Katie Kirk
I don't know if that's her actual last name, but
Katie Kirk says, could Marco Rubio deny his visa based
(21:07):
on his anti Ice rhetoric? No CAFU says, well, we
could deport him right, deport him right during the halftime show.
That would be good Who the hell listens to Bad
Bunny anyway? And David Copp says Ice should deport him
as he takes the stage. Now, that would be a
Super Bowl halftime show we could all get behind.
Speaker 1 (21:27):
Would lawsuit a riot?
Speaker 2 (21:29):
It's he can't be arrested. He's American people, he is American.
That blew my mind.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
Surely people are going to take those down soon when
they realize.
Speaker 2 (21:40):
I don't know but this one got me too because
I referenced all of the imagery that's out there of
bad Bunny now in dresses and looking feminine. Derek writes,
the next best thing to hurt your enemy is to
hurt what they love. The super Bowl, for whatever reason,
is one of the most American things we have left.
This is a kid in the nuts to NFL fans
(22:01):
and and males around the world. Oh my god, that's
just some insight into what people are not just thinking,
but putting down in writing and sending out for the
world to see.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
What do we do, Babe, about the country that folks
don't think an American is welcome because the American sings
in Spanish. What do we do to bridge that divide?
When you're saying this isn't welcome. You're not welcome to
be a part of our American culture. You American Puerto Rican,
You're not allowed to participate.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
This is all we have left, That's what he says.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
So this is the whitest thing we have. I'm saying
the argument seemed to be nothing, but that is that
this thing is no longer.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
Ours with the predominantly black athletic h I mean, come on,
We're not this a white sport. What are you? Are
you kidding me? That's hilarious.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
You're mad at the NFL. Stop watching You've got a
problem with diversity. Stop watching the NFL.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
Can I please put on one shining example that I
saw on Twitter among all of the hate that was
put out there, Angel wrote this bad bunny raised seven
hundred and thirteen million dollars for Puerto Rico with his residency.
What the f does no songs in English have to
do with it. I'm a conservative New York n y Reacan,
(23:25):
New York Reacan, and I'm okay with it. We had
to deal with boring ass Tom Petty a few years ago.
You'll be fine. That made me laugh, And I want
to say, it's not all conservatives, it's not all people
who voted for Trump. It's not all people who call
themselves Republicans. These are a specific group. But they're loud. Yeah,
they're loud, and it's sad, and it's scary because we
(23:48):
don't know. We talked they and they're the first ones
to start getting upset at the liberal extremists, stoking the
fans or stoking fanning the flames, stoking the fire potentially
creating violent situations. What is this then? Wouldn't this be
the exact same rhetoric that could potentially incite violence. I mean,
(24:08):
that's just my thing. Let's all hold up mirrors and
let's all acknowledge that it's happening from extremists on both sides. Period.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
So he's a singer. He's a singer, and I want
to all we have to leave space for people to
genuine to not like that he's there. I just when
the answers come and the reasons come is that it's
I don't want them there, okay, because he's anti Ice,
But I will listen to that. I mean, some people, look,
I get that.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
I get that.
Speaker 1 (24:38):
And where's his statement? He? Uh, where is the statement
he made that upset everybody about. He was essentially saying
that he he's not touring in the US. He has
a tour coming up in November. This guy is an
international superstar. He can make a lot of money in
the US, and he said he is not going to.
Speaker 2 (24:53):
Do it because he said fing Ice could be outside
my concerts. That's what he said. I'm not going to
tour in the United States because FI could be. Now
here's the other thing that we want to get into,
because this is the whole. If it ain't white, it
ain't right. So there is another tweet on X that
actually will push us perfect into this next part of
the conversation. So this one came from someone on X
(25:18):
who wrote fun fact. Maroon five, Adam Levine and the
band headlined the super Bowl Halftime show in twenty nineteen
at the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, marking the last
time a predominantly white performer led an NFL super Bowl
halftime show. They performed with rapper Travis Scott and Big
Boy as guests, both of whom are black. Since then,
(25:39):
shows have featured artists Jennifer Lopez and Shakira twenty twenty,
both Latina, The Weekend twenty twenty one, Black Doctor, Dre
Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, and Kendrick Lamar twenty
twenty two, all black except Eminem. Rihanna, Oh, Rihanna, Sorry,
that was my That was so rude.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
I was in the middle of a thought. I have
to She didn't answer. Sometimes you just send us strike
to voicemail. You don't know, she answered, and immediately hung
up on her. That was. But the point we're still
here making about what has happened to the Super Bowl
halftime show since jay Z took over. Yes, finishing that thought,
(26:21):
you go back to the several the previous shows, so
the past one, two, three, four, five, six shows that
have been done since jay Z took over producing the
halftime show twenty twenty, we talked about Shakiri and j Low.
After that, it was the weekend after that Doctor Dre
Snoop fifty, Eminem, Mary Jay all on the same show.
Then after that it was Rihanna that was one of
(26:42):
my favorite half times yehows. Ever, then Usher he is
an absolute amazing hit hit maker. And then Kendrick Lamar
after the huge year he had with Not Like Us
and winning all the Grammys. He did it last year. Now,
that was Robes the previous artist under jay Z, Black Latina.
(27:03):
Throw in Eminem for good.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
Measure, right, he's the He's yes, but this is very.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
Much a hip hop a yes, pop Latina. This is
very specific to music, would you agree?
Speaker 2 (27:14):
Of course?
Speaker 1 (27:14):
Yes, So that was since jay Z took over. But
listen to the name now that we're all there. In
the nine ten years before jay Z took over. We
talked about Maroon five, the Who that was in twenty ten.
I believe the Who. I don't remember.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
The Who's an it's an older band, I'm sure it is.
You know a song, I couldn't name one, but that's
I bet if I look it up, I could probably
And if I heard when, I probably know one of
their songs.
Speaker 1 (27:42):
Well, I say this, The Who doesn't speak to me.
I've heard of him. I pretty sure they're big and legendary,
but doesn't speak to me. I ain't mad. Let's move on.
Is that okay? Is that what's supposed to happen? Roles
is that I that the music should be made for
the majority. The music should be there for the majority
(28:04):
of the people who are listening who might be of that?
Of it?
Speaker 2 (28:09):
God, I hope not. That's terrible. That's terrible. That's not
what artistry is. It's not about just seeing people listening
to people watching people who look like you, sound like you,
feel like you, think like you. That is not what
art is about.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
You just describe cable news, right, That's what we do.
Speaker 2 (28:26):
People want their ideology reinforced and validated. But the reality is,
how cool is it that we can all listen to
people who come from different walks of life, who don't
look like us, who don't sound like us, who inspire
us in ways we couldn't have imagined, who get us
feeling things we didn't even know we had inside us.
I mean that's part of it. So, yes, if you
look at before jay Z, it's the who Black Eyed Peas, Madonna, Beyonce,
(28:49):
Bruno Mars, Katie Perry, Coldplay, Lady Gaga, justin Timberlake and
then yes, Maroon five. So in that group, what you
have Beyonce, and I mean Bruno Mars is a mixed back,
but he's not black, so it's we went to go
into a deep dive into his ethnicity to try. But anyway, anyway,
you've got Beyonce.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
Right, So if you look at this group the past
ten artists, if you will, I guess before jay Z
took over all white minus Bruno Mars, Beyonce, and I
guess Black Eyed Peas have several minority artists, black artists
in there. They're diverse group, even though the lead singer
is a white lady Madonna was in there. Now is
(29:32):
that list? I will? I really I asked this sincerely,
does anyone who's complaining about bad Bunny, would they have
any problem with that list? Oh god, no, you think so.
I don't Beyonce as well.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
I don't think so, just because she is such a
She is such a like just a juggernaut of a
star with amazing music.
Speaker 1 (29:51):
But you go from a group it was eighty percent
white in the decade before jay Z took over, and
it's been one excuse me, niney nine point nine eminem eminema,
but all diverse, all hip hop, all Latina, all black.
So what I actually do believe? Babe? It should be
(30:14):
more split, It should be more diverse. It should be
it should alternate even to see it's.
Speaker 2 (30:20):
Probably making up for lost time.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
I to your point. I get that, But isn't this
what happens robes. Yes, we've worked at a bunch of places,
and when I had mostly white bosses, it was reflected
in the people who got promotions, who got on air,
all kinds of this is what happens. Jay Z is
there now. Yes, he is picking folks who are from
(30:44):
his realm, from his world, who are also huge international artists.
These names here are the biggest names you will ever
hear in music, who are minorities, Yes, the biggest. What's
the problem with him? Bad bunnies, the baddest dude on
the planet right now.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
I have no problem with it, of course, no problem whatsoever.
And really do people get this upset about a halftime show?
Like your option is to not watch the NFL or
turn it off during the halftime show and make sure
those ratings tank. Fine, there's your power. But I just
think that the hate and the vitriol and just this
(31:20):
constant just just negative, awful energy. It's not serving anyone,
it's not changing anything, it's not doing anything but bringing
us down, and at worst it could be inciting more violence.
That's the concern.
Speaker 1 (31:35):
And this is such an early announcement. We have so
much longer to have this debate. I really really robes.
We have seen things go sideways. How big is this
going to get? How much is the NFL willing to
stand by him? How much are they willing to deal
(31:55):
with whatever he comes. Look, people can plain all day long,
you're going to watch the super Bowl.
Speaker 2 (31:59):
I can't wait to watch this thing.
Speaker 1 (32:01):
Everybody's gonna watch the super Bowl. Don't act like you're
gonna stop watching the NFL. And they know that.
Speaker 2 (32:07):
I just hope that we can all find a space
where we don't have to agree with people's words or comments,
but we can still appreciate their art, their music. It
doesn't mean that we have to hate them, cancel them.
Look and if you don't want to watch, if you
feel that strongly, we get that. But please, the negativity
that's being put out there does nothing to help the situation.
(32:29):
It only hurts. It only brings everybody down further.
Speaker 1 (32:32):
What's the thing you always say, even if you do
react to this in a certain try this, folks. If
your reaction is outrage, if your action is whatever may be,
you want to go, try letting your reaction be curiosity. Wait,
he spinks, he sings only in Spanish, and he's this successful.
Why don't you ask a question about him? Just be curious.
Go look him up, go find out about him. Play
(32:53):
a song. You might go, oh shit, I love this guy.
It's possible that you always said, who tells? Yes?
Speaker 2 (33:01):
I mean, be curious, Be curious instead of getting angry,
be curious. And I just think that is such a
that's just it's such a good way to deal with controversy,
to deal and you know, people I get it. If
you are in law enforcement, love someone in law enforcement,
I can understand why you would be angry at somebody
who potentially is calling out folks who are doing their
(33:23):
job and trying to protect America and Americans. I get that.
But just if we can all take a deep breath,
if we all can just get curious, and if we
all can just give people space to feel the way
they feel, we don't have to do we all. Sometimes
we can't help how we feel, but we can help
how we act. We can help what we put out
in the world. We can help not putting out tweets
(33:47):
that are incendiary and and just talk about hateful and
disrespectful and just terrible.
Speaker 1 (33:54):
And we have to say this any and we should
have said this plenty of times throughout, but I think
we did a couple of We have to have to
drive to this point home. These ice agents are following orders.
Of course, they are doing their jobs. They if you
want to direct your disdain towards someone or the job
(34:16):
they're doing, don't do it to these guys. They are
law enforcement guys with families and good backgrounds and plenty
are really really good dudes. And we know this robes. Yes,
and they are putting in an impossible position right now
to where they are the only faces kind of the
targets in a lot of ways. So we have to
have to say that we understand that people can be
upset if someone has something negative to say about an
(34:37):
ICE agent who they are literally taking fire.
Speaker 2 (34:40):
Yes, these days, and in this country, we express that
through who we vote for. We express that at the polls.
We encourage everyone to yes, get involved, understand and learn
about what's happening in this country, and then make a
choice that you can sit with, that you can live
with when you get an opportunity to vote. That is
(35:01):
how we do things in.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
America, and in America which includes Puerto Rico.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Yes, let's end on that note. And with that, everyone,
thank you for listening to us. I made roboch alongside
DJ Holmes. We appreciate you and we'll talk to you
real soon.
Hey there, folks, it is Monday, September twenty ninety and
if you want to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show,
you bet a ah blah some long glace And with that,
welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ. What the
actual hell rolls? I said it. As soon as they
said bad Bunny. I had half a second that I
was excited, and then we immediately went, oh God, here
(00:25):
we go.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
There is a massive uproar specifically among the MAGA community.
And I don't want to say conservatives, because not all
conservatives are on board with this. It is very specific
to some people within the far right, the MAGA group
that are extremely upset about bad Bunny.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
We know that was coming. We knew that, we saw
this coming. This is not just an artist who is
a Puerto Rican. This is a guy who, oh what
is it? Ninety five percent of his songs are not
in English.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Correct, but you know them at least if you listen
to music. You know then because his music is everywhere
and he has been wildly successful at bringing in people
from all different types of ethnicities. And regardless of what
actual language you speak, music is universal, is it not?
(01:20):
And so he is one of those artists. Everyone runs
on the dance floor when his music comes on.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Period, So why so here we go? All right, super
Bowl halftime performer is announced. This is actually earlier than
they have done in years past. We used to cover this,
and cover this, and cover this, and always wait. Sometimes
it has been as late as a December that we
have gotten were now Jay Z and Rock Nation his
company has been in charge of doing the Super Bowl
halftime show, producing it for the past at least five.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
But since twenty nineteen, I believe that's when they contracted him.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
So he's been doing it. And quite frankly, yes, there
has has there been a white person to performs since
to jay Z. Now there has not been a white artist. Okay, fine,
we'll get into all the artists who were before him
in just a second. But robes this guy, bad Bunny.
The one of the most streamed artists on the planet,
(02:13):
one of the most successful artists on the planet. The
only competition he really has streaming wise might be Taylor
Taylor Swift. A few years ago it might have been Drake,
but she is his only competition. If an artist that big,
this is a no brainer. Well, yeah, he's one of
the biggest stars in music. Of course he should have
this stage. Why is that not the end of it?
Speaker 2 (02:33):
So that's where my head was, because yes, I feel
so naive now because you were very quick to say,
uh oh, this is not going to be good, and
I naively thought, why this is so cool? This is
an not just an up and coming artist. And sure
maybe if you're of a certain age and you have
very specific music tastes, you might not have heard his music.
(02:53):
I find that hard to believe. But okay, let's just
say you don't know who he is. How cool that
someone who has just rallied the world now gets a spotlight,
a national spotlight at the greatest sporting event in all
of the United States. I would say that's fair to say.
The super Bowl is the biggest sporting event of the
year in this country, period, biggest.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
Event every year in the world. Most watch this is it,
this is happening, This guy gets it, and obviously, I say, obviously, Well,
maybe it is obvious to people. There are some that
are upset that the country is becoming too diverse, that
there is a majority minority. Now we have seen plenty
of folks want to kind of DEI scrub the country
(03:36):
to a certain degree, and that's coming out of the administration.
So with that as your backdrop, Now, football American sport,
biggest game American culture. There is there anything more American
than the Super Bowl.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
No, and the folks who are upset point to the
fact that most of his songs are not in English,
that he does dress in a gender bending way. He
has been pictured many times in dresses, and they're throwing
all those pictures up there. His face has been bejeweled
with rhinestones and pearls, and he's worn makeup. And so
(04:11):
they're now saying men are under attack. White people are
under attack. You know, English speaking songs are under attack.
You know, they wanted Taylor, they wanted Dolly. There were
all sorts of people saying, we thought these people might
get a chance.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
I'd be okay with them too. Yes, I have no
problem with diversities. Now, if you all let's start, I
guess let's start with the basics. And we have comments,
and you plucked plenty, and some of them are you
can't believe what you're reading. But we need to start
with this robes.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
Just some facts his credentials before we get into his.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Credentials, can we get into his citizenship?
Speaker 2 (04:48):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (04:48):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
And it's so funny because I actually didn't think this
was necessary until I started reading the comments, and I
started reading them to you, and I said, do people
not think he's American? He is Puerto Rican? Puerto Ricana.
Puerto Rico is a US territory. Puerto Ricans are American citizens,
and in fact, they have right to be upset because
(05:09):
they don't have representation in Congress, and yet they're still
subject to and guaranteed rights as citizens of the United
States of America. If anyone has traveled to Puerto Rico,
which we have had the amazing opportunity to do, so,
you don't have to bring your passport because once again,
(05:29):
you're on American soil when you're in Puerto Rico. Period.
Let's clear that up.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
But there is a whole host of comments you can
find about deporting the guy, or denying him.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
A visa, entrigue, arresting him in the middle, we'll get
I think it's more funny just to read what people wrote,
because but my jaw dropped and then it was just
one after the other. I put three examples in just
to give you the diversity of the ignorance. But it's
wild and hurling insults. They're actually showcasing their ignorance.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Okay, okay, so let's go back. You said Bad Bunny.
You had to have heard the name at this point,
and even if you're not, fine, here's an opportunity to
learn something. We and we'll full disclosure here. We don't
have Bad Bunny constantly streaming on our playlist. He is
not one of our necessarily top artists we listen to. However,
(06:24):
we got plenty of songs of his that you hear him.
I was like, oh, I didn't realize that was Bad Bunny.
Oh I didn't realize it was him. The guy is
a phenomenal artist, now you can this is not just
us being subjective. He has a resume and credentials to
back up. Why at thirty one years old, he just
did a multi hundred million dollar residency in Puerto Rico.
(06:49):
This guy is music right now. Of course he should be.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
And I love that he is going to potentially even
bring a new set of fans who might not have
watched the Super Bowl to the game itself. So how
cool is that that we can have more eyes and
more fans of a pastime that US Americans love and
present parties included. You're huge football fans, and this guy is.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
He puts on extravagant show. It's so it's going to
be special to watch. And we told you he's one
of the most streamed artists on the planet. But get this,
he is the only artist to do this. He went
back to back to back years as the number one
most streamed artists on Spotify. There is not another artist
on the planet who's done that.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Not even Taylor Sweat, not even her. He's the only
artist to ever have a number one album on Billboard
Charts in Spanish.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
That is unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (07:39):
Right there you go. Because music translates. Music is a
universal language. That is why so many of us love music,
because you don't have to know even what the lyrics
are or what the words. We hell half the song
sung in English. These days, I don't even know what
the lyrics are, but I like the song. I have
to look them up. He's a three time Grammy winner.
(08:00):
He's the first person to have a Spanish language album
nominated for a Grammy for Album of the Year.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
That is incredible. That is the most important category. At
the Grammys. This wasn't a Latin Grammy here.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Look, we're seeing it at the Oscars too, where we
see foreign films actually being up for Best Picture. And
that's cool too, that we're all able to share in
the artistry and recognize good shit when we hear it
or see it, regardless of what country actually produces it
or what language it's in. And you got anyone who
loves movies knows that foreign films are like, they're not
any They're not any less valued because they're not in English.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
What do I remember Roma?
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Yeah, I think so, I believe that did nodding. And
how about the Korean the Korean horror movie thank You exactly.
So I'm just saying this translates to different genres of art.
And this isn't the first time. Why is this so
shocking to people? I don't get it now. He actually
already made a halftime Super Bowl appearance. He showed up.
(09:00):
Oh my gosh, I love the Jaelo Shakira halftime show.
That was in twenty twenty. That was jay Z's first
yes yes, because he took over after twenty nineteen, which
was Maroon five. So the first one was Jaylo and Shakira.
I loved that performance, and Bad Bunny made an appearance.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
So again, it's gonna be interesting when we go through
and we read who the performers have been before and
after jay Z took over. That's interesting to see.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
But and being pointed out quite heavily.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
And I'm okay with that, and we will discuss that.
But I am okay. I feel think about the people
of Puerto Rico, how they must feel to know their
guy is going to be on this stage. That's a
really proud moment for Puerto Rico, as it should be,
and it's the pride and what they're going to feel.
And since I immediately so I don't even think I had
(09:51):
fifteen seconds to celebrate him being named. When we saw
it this morning, it was, oh God, we gotta go
through that. We gotta go through this fight. It's gonna
be nasty, it's going to be ugly. It's September. We
got to do this and through next February and then
the show is gonna happen. What you're gonna happen. You
have Boycott's, You're gonna have people going after the NFL.
You've already seen people canceling subscriptions and things like that.
(10:13):
And you brought up this point and not said, damn,
do we even say that out loud? But what we're
talking about here, given all that we've seen, good God,
the super Bowl is already a one of the most
what do they call them a level They call it
super Bowl level security, but they call it as a
(10:34):
targeted event. They treat it as if it's like terrorist
I'm scar.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
In this climate. I have a feeling he has to
be now you know, people lawyer up in some avenues.
He's gonna have to beef up his security. I mean,
it makes me nervous just where we are in this
world and what we're seeing. It feels like week after
week after week. Yes, and the.
Speaker 1 (10:56):
Spanish language songs.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Well, it's also some of his comments that he's made
about ice and about Trump and the fact that he look,
he's got this next big tour. He's announced it begins
at the end of this year, goes through the summer,
and he announced that he is not making any tour
stops in the United States out of fear that his fans,
some of his fans might be targeted by ice raids.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Now coming from again, this is a guy who's from
Puerto Rico. This is a guy who has been I
think you could call him an activist. He's been very
vocal about what he has seen happening to I mean
folks he fills a kinship with, and he has spoken out.
That's okay. Now, folks will interpret the things he's saying
as anti Ice, therefore anti government and anti Trump.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
But that doesn't mean he's anti American. That's the whole
premise by which America stands. On the fact that we
get to say those things and still live freely, the
fact that we get to express our opinions even when
they're not popular or don't necessarily sit well with everyone.
That's what makes America America. Please, please, please, let's not
(12:06):
forget that.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
But we have. It seems in these debates so often
there's only one type of America that some people think
that should be, and it's got to be all white
all the time. And any attempt to be diverse, any
attempt to inject diversity of some kind or a culture
outside of what some feel is good all American culture
(12:28):
is a problem.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
We're a melting pot. We just have forgotten that. Have
we forgotten that? What did you say, if it ain't white,
it ain't right.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
That's what the arguments have been. There's no other argument. Okay,
he shouldn't be there because he sings in Spanish. Okay,
that is that? Really it? Because America shouldn't be that,
you should only have one. That's when we there's some
artists that have done halftime shows. I don't like their music.
I'm not going crazy about it. Okay, I don't like
(12:55):
your music. This is a thing where it seems like
people think so much of the country once again, is
being taken from them. Their position, their majority position, feels
like it's being taken. So it's not even about the
artists and don't like his music. It feels like some
kind of to them, an affront, a political statement, a
direct insult and attack on the America they want to see.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
That is absolutely what's going on. So I have to say,
I loved this. Let's let's let's make a positive beat here.
Bad Bunny his statement that he made. I loved it
after he was announced. I just thought it was sweet
and full of just passion and just really it was heartfelt.
Bad Bunny said this what I'm feeling goes beyond myself.
(13:37):
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.
And then he went on, I won't try it in
Spanish to basically say, go tell your grandmother, we will
be the super Bowl halftime show. Very cute he said it,
and he wrote it in Spanish.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
And the announcement that video they made that was he
didn't speak in the video announcing it.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Showed him you didn't know where, but it was beautiful.
There was a beach around him and as the camera
pulls out you see he's sitting on a goalpost. It
was really cool.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
So our argument here it's not necessarily in favor of
or against. We're not is not this side or that
we just we sit here as Americans, and their's space
for Bad Bunny and all of his fans to actually
(14:30):
be a part of America. We understand the problem that
some people have there should not be And I argue
as well, we've talked about this because we've seen the
attack in Dallas on the ice facility, where we talk
about anti ice rhetoric, there is some of it out there.
These are guys just doing their jobs. California wants them
to take their mask off when they're doing their job,
and all these things. It's serious. People were taking shots
(14:53):
at ICE agents. Now when you put that or take
that into account, I could see how people who are
good meaning folks, yes, who just know ICE agents are
doing their job, or say, hey, these folks are some
of these folks are in the country illegally and they
are just doing their job and this is what should
be done. So to hear anti ice rhetoric, I could
(15:14):
see why they might have a problem.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
So one of the several things are being put up
online and one of them as recently as June where
Bad Bunny did record and post a video. He was
taking video on his cell phone of ICE agents doing
their job, and he was they were there in Puerto Rico,
and he just said, look at those mother efforts in
these cars raft fours. They're here in Pontezuela, sons of
(15:38):
bees instead of leaving the people alone and working there.
So he was taking video of ICE agents and was
cursing and upset that they were targeting and going after
Hispanic folks.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Is there a space for both? Is there a space
for us to have a debate that somebody can see
those raids happening and go, yes, they are doing their jobs,
they are doing a good job, and this is for
the betterment of the country. That could be somebody on
the other side looking at it with a different life
experience and legitimately be upset and speak about being upset
and maybe say something they wish they hadn't said. Whatever,
(16:12):
But it's their space for that debate without him being
anti American and the other side being evil as well.
That's okay about that debate, that's not the one happening.
It is ugly, it is nasty, and when we come back,
we are going to let you hear exactly how ugly
and nasty it is. Gotten And it hadn't even been
(16:32):
twenty four hours yet.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Folks, welcome back to this edition of Amy and TJ.
We are talking about the NFL's decision to unnounce, and
it was exciting for about thirty seconds that Bad Bunny
(16:56):
would be the halftime show of this next year's Super Bowl,
and there was an immediate celebration. Bad Bunny put out
a statement and sure his followers and fans, the millions
of them, all celebrated, but very quickly. We heard from
the other side a lot of people upset that this
(17:17):
particular artist was chosen to perform in this year's Super
Bowl for a number of reasons. And let me just
let them tell you, because they can say it better
than I can. So I saw Benny Johnson three point
nine million followers. This is what he tweeted almost immediately.
(17:38):
This is Bad Bunny. He was just announced as the
twenty twenty six Super Bowl halftime show. Massive trumpeter, anti
ice activist, no songs in English. He even canceled his
entire US tour for this reason. And then he quoted
bad Bunny saying ething ice could be outside my concert
and it's something that we were talking about and very
concerned about. Benny Johnson goes on to say the NFL
(18:00):
is self destructing year after year, and then he shows
two pictures of Bad Bunny looking feminine with pearls and rhymestones.
Was the point of that, Yeah, So he just said that.
Then he let all of his followers just jump in.
So one follower, is this a joke? A dude calls
himself Bad Bunny. Let me guess his music is everywhere.
(18:22):
He's won ten Grammys and he's the hottest performer of
a generation, same as the last guy I never heard of.
He's referring to Kendrick Lamar.
Speaker 1 (18:30):
Obviously take that look for a second. Let's do this robes.
It is, why do people think people aren't deserving of
a platform because that person isn't in your circle?
Speaker 2 (18:45):
So listen to this.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
What you haven't heard of him?
Speaker 2 (18:48):
Yeah, what you're just saying. His next and last line
is this, No, it's gonna speak right to what you
just said. So then he goes on to say, my
question is do they even look in the stands or
do they only go by who is in this suite?
Which begs another question, who are the weirdos in the suites?
So he does want this person, the performer, to reflect
(19:08):
and look like and be a part of what he
considers the football fan in the seats.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
What's the viewership of the super Bowl? There were you
a hundred something millions? Hundred Okay, yeah, there's more than
just the people in the stands. Again, we're trying to
leave space and respect people's opinions. If you don't like
him as a performer, if you don't want him there.
The next thing is what's important to me, why don't
you want him there?
Speaker 2 (19:33):
So listen to this one. This will be fearless, funny enough.
Is this person's name on Twitter? Or X says this?
So the NFL, already hemorrhaging credibility with endless political pandering,
just picked bad Bunny for the twenty twenty six halftime show,
a performer who who openly hates Trump, rails against ice,
and doesn't even sing in English translation. The league chose
(19:55):
a man who openly disrespects half the country and its
laws to headline the biggest American sports stage. Forget unity,
forget broad appeal, forget football culture. The NFL now treats
the Super Bowl like a diversity marketing seminar, where entertainment
value comes second to political symbolism. This isn't about music.
(20:15):
It's about the league bending the knee to cultural gatekeeper,
to cultural gatekeepers, while alienating the very fans who built
its empire.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
Are we still there with cultural gatekeepers? It seems like
Trump is winning all those cultural war Everybody's scared to
death of this guy, Like I'm a little surprised, like
of all people to put on stage, you know, this
is going to piss off Donald Trump. Of course it is,
so I wonder what the contract states. Does jay Z
have to get the blessing? Yes of Roger Goodett.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
Everything I have read says yes, the NFL has to
sign off on it. So Roger Goodell did. Now I'm
going to read these three next ones in a row,
because this was what we referenced before we went to
break at the top of the episode about people who
literally don't understand the Puerto Rico is America. Katie Kirk
I don't know if that's her actual last name, but
Katie Kirk says, could Marco Rubio deny his visa based
(21:07):
on his anti Ice rhetoric? No CAFU says, well, we
could deport him right, deport him right during the halftime show.
That would be good Who the hell listens to Bad
Bunny anyway? And David Copp says Ice should deport him
as he takes the stage. Now, that would be a
Super Bowl halftime show we could all get behind.
Speaker 1 (21:27):
Would lawsuit a riot?
Speaker 2 (21:29):
It's he can't be arrested. He's American people, he is American.
That blew my mind.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
Surely people are going to take those down soon when
they realize.
Speaker 2 (21:40):
I don't know but this one got me too because
I referenced all of the imagery that's out there of
bad Bunny now in dresses and looking feminine. Derek writes,
the next best thing to hurt your enemy is to
hurt what they love. The super Bowl, for whatever reason,
is one of the most American things we have left.
This is a kid in the nuts to NFL fans
(22:01):
and and males around the world. Oh my god, that's
just some insight into what people are not just thinking,
but putting down in writing and sending out for the
world to see.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
What do we do, Babe, about the country that folks
don't think an American is welcome because the American sings
in Spanish. What do we do to bridge that divide?
When you're saying this isn't welcome. You're not welcome to
be a part of our American culture. You American Puerto Rican,
You're not allowed to participate.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
This is all we have left, That's what he says.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
So this is the whitest thing we have. I'm saying
the argument seemed to be nothing, but that is that
this thing is no longer.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
Ours with the predominantly black athletic h I mean, come on,
We're not this a white sport. What are you? Are
you kidding me? That's hilarious.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
You're mad at the NFL. Stop watching You've got a
problem with diversity. Stop watching the NFL.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
Can I please put on one shining example that I
saw on Twitter among all of the hate that was
put out there, Angel wrote this bad bunny raised seven
hundred and thirteen million dollars for Puerto Rico with his residency.
What the f does no songs in English have to
do with it. I'm a conservative New York n y Reacan,
(23:25):
New York Reacan, and I'm okay with it. We had
to deal with boring ass Tom Petty a few years ago.
You'll be fine. That made me laugh, And I want
to say, it's not all conservatives, it's not all people
who voted for Trump. It's not all people who call
themselves Republicans. These are a specific group. But they're loud. Yeah,
they're loud, and it's sad, and it's scary because we
(23:48):
don't know. We talked they and they're the first ones
to start getting upset at the liberal extremists, stoking the
fans or stoking fanning the flames, stoking the fire potentially
creating violent situations. What is this then? Wouldn't this be
the exact same rhetoric that could potentially incite violence. I mean,
(24:08):
that's just my thing. Let's all hold up mirrors and
let's all acknowledge that it's happening from extremists on both sides. Period.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
So he's a singer. He's a singer, and I want
to all we have to leave space for people to
genuine to not like that he's there. I just when
the answers come and the reasons come is that it's
I don't want them there, okay, because he's anti Ice,
But I will listen to that. I mean, some people, look,
I get that.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
I get that.
Speaker 1 (24:38):
And where's his statement? He? Uh, where is the statement
he made that upset everybody about. He was essentially saying
that he he's not touring in the US. He has
a tour coming up in November. This guy is an
international superstar. He can make a lot of money in
the US, and he said he is not going to.
Speaker 2 (24:53):
Do it because he said fing Ice could be outside
my concerts. That's what he said. I'm not going to
tour in the United States because FI could be. Now
here's the other thing that we want to get into,
because this is the whole. If it ain't white, it
ain't right. So there is another tweet on X that
actually will push us perfect into this next part of
the conversation. So this one came from someone on X
(25:18):
who wrote fun fact. Maroon five, Adam Levine and the
band headlined the super Bowl Halftime show in twenty nineteen
at the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, marking the last
time a predominantly white performer led an NFL super Bowl
halftime show. They performed with rapper Travis Scott and Big
Boy as guests, both of whom are black. Since then,
(25:39):
shows have featured artists Jennifer Lopez and Shakira twenty twenty,
both Latina, The Weekend twenty twenty one, Black Doctor, Dre
Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, and Kendrick Lamar twenty
twenty two, all black except Eminem. Rihanna, Oh, Rihanna, Sorry,
that was my That was so rude.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
I was in the middle of a thought. I have
to She didn't answer. Sometimes you just send us strike
to voicemail. You don't know, she answered, and immediately hung
up on her. That was. But the point we're still
here making about what has happened to the Super Bowl
halftime show since jay Z took over. Yes, finishing that thought,
(26:21):
you go back to the several the previous shows, so
the past one, two, three, four, five, six shows that
have been done since jay Z took over producing the
halftime show twenty twenty, we talked about Shakiri and j Low.
After that, it was the weekend after that Doctor Dre
Snoop fifty, Eminem, Mary Jay all on the same show.
Then after that it was Rihanna that was one of
(26:42):
my favorite half times yehows. Ever, then Usher he is
an absolute amazing hit hit maker. And then Kendrick Lamar
after the huge year he had with Not Like Us
and winning all the Grammys. He did it last year. Now,
that was Robes the previous artist under jay Z, Black Latina.
(27:03):
Throw in Eminem for good.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
Measure, right, he's the He's yes, but this is very.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
Much a hip hop a yes, pop Latina. This is
very specific to music, would you agree?
Speaker 2 (27:14):
Of course?
Speaker 1 (27:14):
Yes, So that was since jay Z took over. But
listen to the name now that we're all there. In
the nine ten years before jay Z took over. We
talked about Maroon five, the Who that was in twenty ten.
I believe the Who. I don't remember.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
The Who's an it's an older band, I'm sure it is.
You know a song, I couldn't name one, but that's
I bet if I look it up, I could probably
And if I heard when, I probably know one of
their songs.
Speaker 1 (27:42):
Well, I say this, The Who doesn't speak to me.
I've heard of him. I pretty sure they're big and legendary,
but doesn't speak to me. I ain't mad. Let's move on.
Is that okay? Is that what's supposed to happen? Roles
is that I that the music should be made for
the majority. The music should be there for the majority
(28:04):
of the people who are listening who might be of that?
Of it?
Speaker 2 (28:09):
God, I hope not. That's terrible. That's terrible. That's not
what artistry is. It's not about just seeing people listening
to people watching people who look like you, sound like you,
feel like you, think like you. That is not what
art is about.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
You just describe cable news, right, That's what we do.
Speaker 2 (28:26):
People want their ideology reinforced and validated. But the reality is,
how cool is it that we can all listen to
people who come from different walks of life, who don't
look like us, who don't sound like us, who inspire
us in ways we couldn't have imagined, who get us
feeling things we didn't even know we had inside us.
I mean that's part of it. So, yes, if you
look at before jay Z, it's the who Black Eyed Peas, Madonna, Beyonce,
(28:49):
Bruno Mars, Katie Perry, Coldplay, Lady Gaga, justin Timberlake and
then yes, Maroon five. So in that group, what you
have Beyonce, and I mean Bruno Mars is a mixed back,
but he's not black, so it's we went to go
into a deep dive into his ethnicity to try. But anyway, anyway,
you've got Beyonce.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
Right, So if you look at this group the past
ten artists, if you will, I guess before jay Z
took over all white minus Bruno Mars, Beyonce, and I
guess Black Eyed Peas have several minority artists, black artists
in there. They're diverse group, even though the lead singer
is a white lady Madonna was in there. Now is
(29:32):
that list? I will? I really I asked this sincerely,
does anyone who's complaining about bad Bunny, would they have
any problem with that list? Oh god, no, you think so.
I don't Beyonce as well.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
I don't think so, just because she is such a
She is such a like just a juggernaut of a
star with amazing music.
Speaker 1 (29:51):
But you go from a group it was eighty percent
white in the decade before jay Z took over, and
it's been one excuse me, niney nine point nine eminem eminema,
but all diverse, all hip hop, all Latina, all black.
So what I actually do believe? Babe? It should be
(30:14):
more split, It should be more diverse. It should be
it should alternate even to see it's.
Speaker 2 (30:20):
Probably making up for lost time.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
I to your point. I get that, But isn't this
what happens robes. Yes, we've worked at a bunch of places,
and when I had mostly white bosses, it was reflected
in the people who got promotions, who got on air,
all kinds of this is what happens. Jay Z is
there now. Yes, he is picking folks who are from
(30:44):
his realm, from his world, who are also huge international artists.
These names here are the biggest names you will ever
hear in music, who are minorities, Yes, the biggest. What's
the problem with him? Bad bunnies, the baddest dude on
the planet right now.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
I have no problem with it, of course, no problem whatsoever.
And really do people get this upset about a halftime show?
Like your option is to not watch the NFL or
turn it off during the halftime show and make sure
those ratings tank. Fine, there's your power. But I just
think that the hate and the vitriol and just this
(31:20):
constant just just negative, awful energy. It's not serving anyone,
it's not changing anything, it's not doing anything but bringing
us down, and at worst it could be inciting more violence.
That's the concern.
Speaker 1 (31:35):
And this is such an early announcement. We have so
much longer to have this debate. I really really robes.
We have seen things go sideways. How big is this
going to get? How much is the NFL willing to
stand by him? How much are they willing to deal
(31:55):
with whatever he comes. Look, people can plain all day long,
you're going to watch the super Bowl.
Speaker 2 (31:59):
I can't wait to watch this thing.
Speaker 1 (32:01):
Everybody's gonna watch the super Bowl. Don't act like you're
gonna stop watching the NFL. And they know that.
Speaker 2 (32:07):
I just hope that we can all find a space
where we don't have to agree with people's words or comments,
but we can still appreciate their art, their music. It
doesn't mean that we have to hate them, cancel them.
Look and if you don't want to watch, if you
feel that strongly, we get that. But please, the negativity
that's being put out there does nothing to help the situation.
(32:29):
It only hurts. It only brings everybody down further.
Speaker 1 (32:32):
What's the thing you always say, even if you do
react to this in a certain try this, folks. If
your reaction is outrage, if your action is whatever may be,
you want to go, try letting your reaction be curiosity. Wait,
he spinks, he sings only in Spanish, and he's this successful.
Why don't you ask a question about him? Just be curious.
Go look him up, go find out about him. Play
(32:53):
a song. You might go, oh shit, I love this guy.
It's possible that you always said, who tells? Yes?
Speaker 2 (33:01):
I mean, be curious, Be curious instead of getting angry,
be curious. And I just think that is such a
that's just it's such a good way to deal with controversy,
to deal and you know, people I get it. If
you are in law enforcement, love someone in law enforcement,
I can understand why you would be angry at somebody
who potentially is calling out folks who are doing their
(33:23):
job and trying to protect America and Americans. I get that.
But just if we can all take a deep breath,
if we all can just get curious, and if we
all can just give people space to feel the way
they feel, we don't have to do we all. Sometimes
we can't help how we feel, but we can help
how we act. We can help what we put out
in the world. We can help not putting out tweets
(33:47):
that are incendiary and and just talk about hateful and
disrespectful and just terrible.
Speaker 1 (33:54):
And we have to say this any and we should
have said this plenty of times throughout, but I think
we did a couple of We have to have to
drive to this point home. These ice agents are following orders.
Of course, they are doing their jobs. They if you
want to direct your disdain towards someone or the job
(34:16):
they're doing, don't do it to these guys. They are
law enforcement guys with families and good backgrounds and plenty
are really really good dudes. And we know this robes. Yes,
and they are putting in an impossible position right now
to where they are the only faces kind of the
targets in a lot of ways. So we have to
have to say that we understand that people can be
upset if someone has something negative to say about an
(34:37):
ICE agent who they are literally taking fire.
Speaker 2 (34:40):
Yes, these days, and in this country, we express that
through who we vote for. We express that at the polls.
We encourage everyone to yes, get involved, understand and learn
about what's happening in this country, and then make a
choice that you can sit with, that you can live
with when you get an opportunity to vote. That is
(35:01):
how we do things in.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
America, and in America which includes Puerto Rico.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Yes, let's end on that note. And with that, everyone,
thank you for listening to us. I made roboch alongside
DJ Holmes. We appreciate you and we'll talk to you
real soon.
Hosts And Creators
Amy Robach
T.J. Holmes
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