NFL Make Decision on Replacing Bad Bunny for Super Bowl After Donald Trump Row
The NFL have announced a decision on replacing Bad Bunny from the Super Bowl half-time show amid backlash led by Donald Trump.
In September, it was confirmed that Bad Bunny will be next star to perform a 15-minute at half-time of the NFL's biggest clash.
Super Bowl LX takes place at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California and reggaeton sensation Bunny, real name Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, becomes the first Latin American male artist to get the gig.
The 31-year-old is a three-time Grammy winner and averaged 81.4 million listeners a month on Spotify, with his songs primarily in Spanish.
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But his selection caused a major stir amongst many, with a petition to the Puerto Rican replaced garnering 50,000 signatures and calling for country singer George Strait to get the nod.
Trump, who became the first sitting president to attend a Super Bowl earlier this year, slammed the decision to pick Bad Bunny - branding it "crazy" and "absolutely ridiculous" during an interview with Newsmax’s Greg Kelly.
He also said he had never heard of the Happy Gilmore and Caught Stealing star.
Bunny, who had a 31-day residency in Puerto Rico, has been vocal about Trump's immigration policies and said he did not include any mainland US tour dates amid concerns of the shows being raided by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement).
The NFL, as well as sponsors Apple Music and Jay-Z's entertainment firm Roc Nation, are responsible for giving Bunny the biggest platform.
And despite the noise surrounding the show, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has confirmed Bunny will perform as scheduled with no consideration of a change.
"It's carefully thought through," Goodell said, as ESPN.
"I'm not sure we've ever selected an artist where we didn't have some blowback or criticism. It's pretty hard to do when you have literally hundreds of millions of people that are watching."
He added: "We're confident it's going to be a great show. He understands the platform that he's on, and I think it's going to be exciting and a united moment.
"He's one of the leading and most popular entertainers in the world. That's what we try to achieve. It's an important stage for us. It's an important element to the entertainment value."
Bunny, who had a handful of matches in WWE, recently hosted Saturday Night Live and joked that fans had "four months to learn Spanish" in a reference to the language of his lyrics.
His Puerto Rico residency is believed to have brought roughly half a million people to the island.
Topics: NFL, Donald Trump
Josh Lawless