Bad Bunny Explains His Music Is Not Made 'For The Gringo Audience'

After the debut of his breakthrough hit "Soy Peor" in late 2016, Benito Antonio Martnez Ocasio alias Bad Bunny soared to fame following his collaboration with Cardi B and Drake on the tracks "I Like It" and "Mia," which reached number one and number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 respectively.

Although many of his songs are primarily sung in Spanish, the musician's work has gained international recognition, earning him well-deserved awards, and breaking music records along the way.

Bad Bunny has now spoken out about his road to global acceptability, revealing that he had no special intentions for how or where to drive his music to reach the heights it has.

Bad Bunny, who is of Puerto Rican descent, spoke with People about how his rise to the top was spurred by his unshakable devotion to sharing his abilities with his people, rather than by selfish demands for international recognition.

"I was never on a mission to be like, 'Oh, this is what I'm going to do,'" the "Ojitos Lindos," the singer told the news publication. "It happened organically. Like, I've never made a song saying, 'This is going to go worldwide.' I never made a song thinking, 'Man, this is for the world. This is to capture the gringo audience.' Never."

Bad Bunny went on to say that no matter how famous he is now, he still writes music with Puerto Ricans in mind and that he frequently forgets to make the required changes that would make it more widely accepted by people outside of his native country.

"On the contrary, I make songs as if only Puerto Ricans were going to listen to them. I still think I'm there making music, and it's for Puerto Ricans," he added. "I forget the entire world listens to me."

Despite Bad Bunny's statements that he never intended for his music to be a worldwide success, his superb work speaks for itself and has won over fans all over the world.

The artiste's achievements have clearly not gone unnoticed by him, prompting his comment regarding how Latino audiences can now understand that their own artists can top the charts without relying on an American collaborator to pull them all the way.

"The Latino audience would always undervalue their artist," he said. "Sometimes, Latinos would want to record with an American, and because they're American, they'd think, 'I have to do it.' No, man. He's not at the level I am, you know? Just because they're American."

He added, "But that perspective has changed. You can see it now. People have become aware. They suddenly see, 'Wow, Bad Bunny has been the most listened to on Spotify for 70 days. It wasn't the American. It's this guy, who's Latino.'"

Aside from music, Bad Bunny has established himself as a fashion icon, wearing a variety of outfits to events that have blurred the lines between the known norm for masculine and feminine attire.

The 28-year-old recently wore a tan puff-sleeved jacket and skirt over a blue collared shirt and black tie on the Met Gala red carpet, which was hailed by fashion aficionados and piqued their interest as to what influences his unconventional style.

He recently explained why he dresses in such an unorthodox way, claiming that his ensembles are not driven by "gender" choices but rather by his emotional state before going out for events.

"It depends on my state of mind," he said in a recent interview with GQ. "Everybody has to feel comfortable with what they are, and how they feel. Like, what defines a man, what defines being masculine, and what defines being feminine? I really can't give clothes gender."

Bad Bunny released his fourth studio album, "Un Verano Sin Ti," earlier this month, which follows his smash 2020 album "YHLQMDLG" and further bears testament to the singer's unrelenting push for greater heights.

The new project, spiced by its bright and beautiful cover art, was launched to herald the summer season, as Bad Bunny advocates putting melancholy aside and living in the now in parallel with the stress-free, relaxing, and basically fun moments of summertime.

"Un Verano Sin Ti" was released a week after Sony Pictures CEO Sanford Panitch said that the acclaimed singer would play Spider-Man universe character "El Muerto" in a standalone film. The news marked a major for Latino inclusion in films since "EL Muerto" is the first Latino comic book character to be adapted into a solo movie.

The singer will also follow up the album release with his fourth concert tour, dubbed "World's Hottest Tour," in August 2022. The stadium tour will visit fourteen countries for 43 concerts across the United States and Latin America.