- Ronald Ávila-Claudio – @ronaldavilapr
- BBC News World
image source, Getty Images
For Professor Nathian Rodríguez, analyzing the figure of Bad Bunny will allow his students to understand issues as diverse as masculinity and commodification.
Professor Nathian Rodríguez, from San Diego State University in California, says he has received messages from “everywhere” since the institution announced that it would offer a course on Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny.
People from Puerto Rico, Mexico City and even Peru have written to him asking how they can take the class, if it will be offered online or if they need to move to campus.
Experts in media and Latin, like him, have expressed their interest in collaborating during the teaching process.
The euphoria over the course, which will begin in 2023 and be available to graduate students from the School of Journalism and Media, is further proof that the 28-year-old singer-songwriter is one of the most influential figures in global pop, says Rodriguez.
The doctor of media studies and of Mexican descent insists that Benito Martinez Ocasiowho was the most listened to artist on Spotify in 2020 and 2021, and who also leads the most lucrative tour of 2022, can teach his students about topics as diverse as music market Y masculinity theories.
“Students will be able to understand, in real time, the content they currently consume from this artist,” says the educator, who arrived at the Californian institution in 2016.
Meanwhile, he adds that “there are many reasons why Bad Bunny is an important cultural figure, which make us want to analyze it from a media perspective.”
image source, Professor Nathien Rodríguez’s website
Professor Nathian Rodríguez has been working since 2016 at San Diego State University. He has a doctorate in media studies.
In an interview with BBC Mundo, Rodriguez tells what the content of the course will be.
But, in addition, the social scientist delves into why the University of San Diego decided to open the seminar and why this star of urban music can help us understand the world around us.
Can you tell us what the course is about?
The course, which will only be available at the graduate level and will begin in January, will be focused on the media, because it was prepared by the journalism school.
We’ll look at how Bad Bunny has used the media to talk about sociopolitical issues and culture, but we’ll also talk about representation and Latinoness. We will discuss issues that occur in Puerto Rico, such as colonialism and the displacement of its population.
But Bad Bunny is much more. He also advocates for LGBTIQ+ people. So we can discuss issues about masculinity. A good example that could serve us is the song and video “Yo perreo sola”. And the fact that he kissed a dancer during the MTV Music Awards.
We will also talk about commodification. His person is used to sell Cheetos, Crocs, Adidas. He was in wrestling, sells clothes and other types of merchandise. We will use it as a cultural archetype to see how companies commodify Latinidad.
image source, Getty Images
Could you explain the concept of commodification and how it relates to Bad Bunny?
Commodification occurs when large neoliberal corporations, especially global ones, create “institutions” to make money.
One example is how Bad Bunny, a Latin reggaeton and trap artist, was used in a Brad Pitt movie in which he was given little screen time but sold many movie tickets among Latino audiences.
Bad Bunny did not have a predominant role in the WWE wrestling company, he was fighting another fighter for a short time, but the program still obtained a large Latino audience.
So we will analyze how the image of Bad Bunny is used for these productions to win a Latino audience.
It is the best example to show that there is not only purchasing power in the Latino community, but also to see where their purchasing power is going.
What does Bad Bunny represent for the Latin community?
People who speak Spanish, and from Latin American countries, see someone like them in Bad Bunny. They listen to someone who speaks Spanish in an Anglo-Saxon space. They see MTV, they listen to Spanish and they think: “this person dreams like me”.
image source, Google
But it represents different levels of Latinidad.
He is authentic, he paints his nails, he dresses as he wants. When interviewed in English, he answers in Spanish. He has an accent and he doesn’t care.
He is who he is and he sings about what he wants. I think that whoever sees it understands that there is not only one way to be Latino.
And what would you say is its impact on the non-Latino community?
It is very difficult to speak for people I do not understand. Especially now that we live in a country (USA) so divided. But I can tell you that Bad Bunny is everywhere and it’s not for nothing that he’s selling out concerts. And that many of those who go to their shows they do not speak Spanish.
Many go to his shows because they enjoy his music, to be part of his atmosphere. But I imagine that there are those who are still trying to understand why it is so popular, why it is everywhere.
Dand what I learned in this coursewhat can take to the work scene the students?
In addition to the Bad Bunny course, I have taught a class on Selena for undergraduate students for the past two years. I will also offer it in spring. It’s about Mexican-American identity and the border.
Students take away from these courses an idea of who they really are. I hope they take the same from Bad Bunny’s class.
Since Bad Bunny’s class is a graduate level, the students have already studied theory and can do research. So I hope they have a deep and critical understanding of Latinidad, of how the US media is used to understand the global south.
image source, Getty Images
There are many people who have criticized Bad Bunny and the exponents of urban music because their lyrics could sometimes be categorized as sexist, misogynistic and homophobic. What do you think about this?
The course will not be a mass around Bad Bunny. We are not a church, we are not here to praise him or to say that he is perfect and that everything he does should be exalted.
We will have an opportunity to examine his lyrics, to analyze his music, also reggaeton in general.
When I tell you that we will talk about masculinity, I mean everything that is related to this concept. Toxic masculinity, objectification, sexualization and homophobia. All that is part of the macho culture. Bad Bunny has contributed to this.
But he has also done positive things. We will be critical of the good and the bad.
Is there a new way of understanding Puerto Rico thanks to Bad Bunny?
Many people who are not from the island know little about Puerto Rico. In the US, many citizens do not know that the island is part of the country.
image source, Getty Images
What we hear all the time is that it is a place where hurricanes arrive, a tropical place to go on vacation.
What Bad Bunny has done is open the eyes of many people about what is happening there. About the injustices in relation to the electrical network, displacement and everything related to natural resources such as beaches.
But it also shows the beauty of the people, the idea that Puerto Ricans are not only suffering, but that they are proud of themselves. Who are out there in the world doing great things.
Some may think it’s bad for Puerto Rico, because he sings about “perrear”, but the reality is that he is giving Puerto Ricans an opportunity to amplify their voices.
Puerto Ricans have always had a voice, but he is giving them a stage, a platform.
image source, Getty Images
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We want to thank the author of this write-up for this amazing material
“Bad Bunny has opened many people’s eyes about what is happening in Puerto Rico”: the teacher who will offer a course on the singer in California – BBC News Mundo