By: Eileen Escobedo

As we know, the current pandemic that revolves around COVID-19 has influenced how we live our everyday lives – from how we host meetings, to the way we stream music – since we aren’t spending much time commuting from place to place. Given the circumstances, it is also evident that large gatherings – and live concerts, in particular – are not taking place. What I have observed, in the meantime, is that some artists have presented live streams on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram to keep their fans and the public going during these harsh times.

One artist who I would like to highlight is Latin trap and reggaeton artist Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, known as Bad Bunny, who found ways to entertain his fans during this time. In May 2020, the artist released an album called “LAS QUE NO IBAN A SALIR,” a compilation of extra songs recorded, but not released, with the tracks from his prior album, “YHLQMDLG.” Bad Bunny released this relatively new album, “LAS QUE NO IBAN A SALIR,” on May 10, 2020, Mother’s Day. The album’s name clarifies to the public that the songs featured were not originally intended for release. Here, most of the songs deal with having fun, staying home, sending blessings to the world, and giving a special thanks to essential care workers.

In addition to dropping this latest album, Bad Bunny hosted a stream on Instagram Live, through which he engaged his followers by giving them shoutouts and sharing his favorite songs. He was able to do this all while quarantining with his wife, Gabriela Berlingeri, in Puerto Rico. Bad Bunny used his house as a stage: he used kitchen tools, such as a spatula, to sing into, for example, and he did not really show any signs of a luxurious life. Given the harsh times during which no one was really able to otherwise go out and celebrate, the artist encouraged fans to enjoy and treat the livestream as if it were a live concert. The online event generated many viral Instagram posts, Tweets, and TikTok videos, some featuring comments by the artist, or even live singing.

Lastly, something that really stood out to me about Bad Bunny was the fact that following the stream on Instagram Live, he gave back to his crowd, once again. The artist decided to host a virtual concert in September. Many fans were again getting ready to have a great time watching him sing into a spatula in his home in Puerto Rico. As it turned out, Bad Bunny had come to New York City. The artist performed on a concert float that was similar to a Metro North train, with album title “YHLQMDLG” written all over it. The acronym stands for and translates to “I do whatever I want.”

Bad Bunny started his concert near the Yankee Stadium area in the Bronx. He then headed from the Bronx toward Washington Heights and elsewhere in Manhattan. Many news outlet reports offered an explanation as to why the artist had decided to come to New York. The reports noted that we, as New Yorkers, have supported Bad Bunny from the start of his career; he wanted to visit since we were one of the first states that was tragically impacted by COVID-19. Here, Bad Bunny wanted to show how grateful he was. As the moving virtual concert came to an end, he stopped at Harlem Hospital – where he performed a famous song – to pay respects to our essential workers and to motivate them to keep going and keep our community safe.

As quoted in a Billboard Charts article published September 20, the following statement by Bad Bunny stands out to me: “With a lot of faith in God, I sense that good things are coming. I know we are going through very difficult times. I have made thousands of mistakes, but my only mission is to try to be a better person every day.” This quote is interesting to me because it shows how faithful and how humble Bad Bunny is, in the sense that he sees himself as a human being, working on himself, despite his fame.