Bad Bunny won 2020, and he have just started…
Written by gagarin on December 26, 2020
No artist had a bigger year in 2020 than Bad Bunny. In February, the Puerto Rican superstar released his acclaimed second album, YHLQMDLG, filled with nods to the old-school reggaeton he grew up listening to back home. The world shuttered shortly after that, but he still found a way to keep his career — and his fans — moving. In May, he dropped an LP of outtakes, Las Que No Iban a Salir, and in September, he came to New York for a spectacular, Covid-appropriate mobile concert, where he rode through the Bronx, Washington Heights, and Harlem on the flatbed of a truck and got a hero’s welcome. The grand finale to his year came in November, when he shared El Último Tour del Mundo, a defiant industry game-changer lit up by streaks of rock guitar.
In only two years, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio has gone from a virtually unknown Puerto Rican kid to one of the biggest Latin trap stars in the world. After dozens of singles and a feature on the no. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 , 24-year-old Bad Bunny is ready to release his first full-length album La Nueva Religión.
At least that’s what we know from his cover story for The FADER‘s Fall Fashion issue, in which Bad Bunny speaks about his sudden rise to fame, his Vega Baja roots, and what he envisions for his future.In the last few months, Martínez has hinted at a full-length album. But he has also remained true to his style with several collaborations dropping on a month-to-month basis, a strategy that he’s held since his days on SoundCloud. His latest collabs are a remake of Hector El Father’s 2004 “Vamos pa’ la calle” and “¿Cuál es tu plan?” featuring PJ Sin Suela and Ñejo. While there isn’t a full list of the full-length’s features available, we’re hoping the anticipated Drake collab (in Spanish!) appears on La Nueva Religión, especially since it’s missing from Scorpion.Off the stage, Martínez is the eldest brother in a family of three, and constantly visits his relatives in his hometown of Vega Baja, Puerto Rico. Though he is one of the most controversial lyricists in the game (his songs often anger conservatives around the world, especially at his home island, and several of his songs have been banned in the Dominican Republic), Martínez told The FADER that his parents turn up the volume in his car every time one of his songs is played.The interview goes deeper into his background as a skater boy who grew up going to church with his mom and developed a passion for salsa artists and wrestling matches thanks to his dad. Read the full cover story here.
