Bad Bunny's love letter to Puerto Rico

EPISODE 402

The first great release of 2025 is already here: Bad Bunny's newest album, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS. Over the course of its 17 tracks, the Puerto Rican reggaetonero crafts an intertextual, anti-colonial tome of a record, incorporating sounds from across his island and the boricua diaspora. From his use of salsa classics on "NUEVAYoL," to his pointed interpolations on "VOY A LLeVARTE PA PR," and his detour into folk melodies and songwriting on tracks like the somber "LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii," the record features some of Bad Bunny's most creative, intense, and direct work yet. On this episode of Switched On Pop, producer Reanna Cruz takes Charlie and Nate on a journey through Bad Bunny's love letter to Puerto Rico, with additional insight from journalist and translator Carina del Valle Schorske.

More

Read Carina's NPR Music review of the record: Bad Bunny's politics of presence.

Songs Discussed

Bad Bunny, "DtMF"

Bad Bunny, "NUEVAYoL"

Bad Bunny, "BOKeTE"

Bad Bunny, "EL CLúB"

El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico, "Un verano en Nueva York"

Bad Bunny, "PIToRRO DE COCO"

Bad Bunny, "BAILE INoLVIDABLE"

Rauw Alejandro, "Tú Con Él"

Bad Bunny, "VOY A LLeVARTE PA PR"

Wisin & Yandel, Héctor "El Father," "La Barría"

Alexis y Fido, "Me Quiere Besar"

Angel y Khriz, "Cazando Voy"

Bad Bunny, "El Apagón"

Bad Bunny, Kendo Kaponi, Arcángel, "P FKN R"

Bad Bunny, "LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii"

Bad Bunny, "CAFé CON RON"