Bad BunnyDespite the animosity of the Trump administration and its core MAGA following, Bad Bunny’s spectacular mostly-Spanish language halftime performance at Super Bowl LX has created waves around the world.
The show, with guests including Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin, attracted 128.2 million viewers. In comparison, the petty “alternate” halftime show headed by Kid Rock and country music acts struggled with 6.1 million tuning in on YouTube.
In the immediate aftermath, not only has it turned the Puerto Rican superstar into more of a global phenomenon, but has triggered interest in South American culture and travel.
In Australia, the 14-minute February 8th show resulted in his making an appearance in an unexpected ARIA Singles chart list. The track DtMF from early 2025 this week jumped from #75 to #4 – up 71 spots.
In 40+ years since the ARIA chart came into being, only 12 other tracks had such a long leap.
The most is 94 places by David Bowie & Mick Jagger’s Dancing In The Street (1985). It went #97 to #3 after they performed it at Live Aid.
In second place is Silverchair’s second single Pure Massacre (1995), bounding 90 places from #92 to #2. This was the start of Chairmania, following up the chart topping Tomorrow.
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The excitement around Pure Massacre was aided by Robert Hambling’s music video which used live footage shot in Sydney from the hair shaking unrestrained teenagers.
Spacey Jane’s Booster Seat (2021) was originally rejected by the Perth band’s producer because of its slow pace. But it proved itself, first with a hop-skip-jump of 86 places to its #8 berth from #94.
It went on to be certified 7x platinum for sales of 490,000, voted #2 in triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2020, took Song of the Year at the ARIA Awards, Best Single at the West Australian Music Industry Awards, and Independent Song of the Year at the AIR Awards.
Others on the list are:
Ocean Alley – Confidence (2019) 93→9 (84 places)
Gabrielle Aplin – Please Don't Say You Love Me (2014) 86→3 (83 places)
Madonna – Angel/Into The Groove (1985) 99→17 (82 places)
The Incredible Penguins – Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (1985) 90→10 (80 places)
Alice Deejay – Back In My Life (2000) 96→19 (77 places)
Band Aid – Do They Know It's Christmas? (1984) 94→17 (77 places)
Paloma Faith – Only Love Can Hurt Like This (2014) 82→7 (75 places)
Jessie J – Masterpiece (2015) 91→18 (73 places)
Glee Cast – Poker Face (2010) 97→25 (72 places)
This week, NUEVAYoL returned at #25 and BAILE INoLVIDABLE at #34. The album was up to #4 from #20 in its 11th week.
Bad Bunny is no stranger to such high jumps in Australia. On the ARIA Albums side, Debí Tirar Más Fotos last year went from #99 to #16.
Another album taking similar long-jumps on the ARIA ratings was in 2024, when Ariana Grande’s extended Eternal Sunshine Deluxe: Brighter Days Ahead flew to first spot from #79.
Four years before, when Australian audiences were brooding through COVID lock-ins, Mushroom’s Music From The Home Front TV series went from #83 to #1.
Bunny Hops
Immediately after the Super Bowl, listens of his music on Apple Music were up sevenfold. The album was also gaining traction in non-Spanish-speaking countries, including Canada (60%), the UK (54%), and Brazil (43%).
In the UK, the album which peaked at #13 last year, now climbed 42 spots to #2. He was held off top spot by Olivia Dean's The Art Of Loving.
DtMF rose 39 places to #4 (his highest position in that country with NUEVAYoL at #15 and BAILE INoLVIDABLE at #20.
In the United States, Bad Bunny music had already roared back into the spotlight after Debi Tirar Más Fotos won Album Of The Year at the Grammys. Five singles went back into the Billboard Hot 100 as a result.
The Super Bowl impact on the US charts won’t be known until later this week. Billboard is predicting a flood of re-entries, some overtaking their past peaks.
This could include earlier hits such as 2023's Monaco, 2022’s Tití Me Preguntó, and 2020’s Yo Perreo Sola which he performed at the Super Bowl.
With DtMF topping the Spotify and Apple Music it’s also possible that the song, which last year peaked at #2, could go to #1.
This would be his first solo topper on the Billboard Hot 100. The only time was his collaboration with Cardi B and J Balvin on the 2018 smash I Like It. (The track reached #14 that year in Australia).
Travel Searches
Billboard also noted that aside from the Super Bowl show impacting heavily in charts and on streaming figures, travel searches for Puerto Rico were up 245% “as fans clamour for a taste of the island’s tropical culture, chart-topping music, and energy showcased on one of the world’s biggest stages.”
"Pop culture has a real influence on where people choose to travel, and we're seeing that play out in a big way this week," an Expedia Group rep told Billboard.
Searches for Puerto Rico’s capital San Juan were up 240% and those to the star’s seaside hometown Vega Baja spiked 1,450%.
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl celebration of South American culture also saw travel searches jump for Mexico (210%), Brazil and Colombia (120%) and Argentina (70%).
Billboard noted: “Bad Bunny’s influence isn’t just trending Stateside — it’s driving interest in his upcoming international tour destinations, too, according to Expedia data.
“Flight searches to London, where he will perform this June, spiked by 90%, while Madrid saw a 20% boost.”
It’s hard to know the extent to which the Super Bowl telecast has affected travel plans from Australia, where the star plays two shows in Sydney on February 28 and March 1.
According to domestic travel company Intrepid, “South America is shaping up to become one of the hottest destinations for travellers in the coming year.”
The appeal is beaches, nightlife, music, hiking, rainforests and mountains. Leading bookings is Peru, which has a 59% surge in bookings from last year, and Chile up 54%.
