Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny said he won’t perform in the United States this year. In a new interview with Variety, the Grammy winner explained that U.S. fans have already had plenty of chances to see him live over the past few years.
“It’s unnecessary,” he said, referring to touring in the States.
A record-breaking global star
Bad Bunny recently became the first Latin act to sell out stadiums in both Italy and Poland, according to promoter Live Nation. He also topped Billboard’s year-end Boxscore Top Tours chart in 2022, with expectations that he could do it again in 2025.
Billboard’s recap shows Bad Bunny’s combined tours that year had a total gross profit of $373.5 million from 1.8 million tickets across 65 shows.
No stranger to politics
The artist has a history of using his platform for political advocacy. He endorsed former Vice President Kamala Harris during her 2024 presidential run and famously paused his 2019 tour to join mass protests in Puerto Rico demanding the resignation of then-Gov. Ricardo Rosselló.
Earlier this week, Bad Bunny shared footage on his Instagram Story of what appeared to be an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. In comments translated by the Los Angeles Times, the singer condemned the agents, calling them out explicitly.
“Look, those motherf—ers are in these cars, RAV4s. They’re here on [Avenida] Pontezuela,” Bad Bunny said. “Instead of leaving the people alone and working.”
According to a June NPR article, there are an estimated 20,000 immigrants without legal status in Puerto Rico.
“Our mandate is 100%,” Rebecca González-Ramos, a top ICE investigator, told NPR. “So everybody that’s in the United States, and in this case in Puerto Rico, without an immigration status, needs to be removed or deported.”
Potential ICE raids?
Some fans believe this recent criticism — and Bad Bunny’s broader political stance — are key reasons he’s skipping U.S. tour dates.
“Knowing ICE, if Bad Bunny were to tour in the U.S., they’ll use the locations of arenas and stadiums just to arrest and deport people,” one X user wrote.
Another pointed to a similar claim, referring to reports of ICE agents allegedly attempting to enter Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles — an incident that sparked controversy online. The official ICE account denied the claim, while the Department of Homeland Security confirmed U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers were briefly present for reasons unrelated to “any operation or enforcement.”
Focus on Puerto Rico
While U.S. fans will miss out, Bad Bunny is planning a 30-show residency in Puerto Rico beginning on July 11. According to USA Today, it’s expected to bring in an estimated 600,000 attendees during peak tourism season.
The island is preparing for the fully sold-out residency.
“We are making sure that we’re educating those visitors. First, so they behave as they should, but also so they’re intrigued about our culture, our music, our history, our gastronomy … things Bad Bunny touches on in his album and already has momentum with,” Glorianna Yamín, vice president of marketing at Discover Puerto Rico, told USA Today.
Bad Bunny’s residency there ends in September before his world tour kicks off in November, excluding the United States.
When asked by Variety if he’d release a concert film like Beyoncé or Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny responded that it would also be “unnecessary.”
