Maybe More A-List Artists Should Approach Touring Like Bad Bunny, Actually

"There was the issue that…ICE could be outside (my concert venue)," Bad Bunny told i-D. "And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”

By Audra Heinrichs | September 12, 2025 | 2:36pm

Photo: Getty Images Celebrities Entertainment Notable/Quotable,

Maybe More A-List Artists Should Approach Touring Like Bad Bunny, Actually

On Wednesday, i-D published an interview with Bad Bunny (né Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio). In it, the Grammy-winning Puerto Rican rapper and singer-songwriter spoke extensively on the incredible success of his residency at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan. The residency, called “I Don’t Want to Leave Here,” spans 30 concerts on the island and wraps on September 14. It’s welcomed everyone from Penelope Cruz to Austin Butler to John Hamm. Most importantly, though, it’s created a safe space (and economy boom) in celebration of the people of Puerto Rico.

“I’ve done a lot of shows here in Puerto Rico, and I don’t think I’ve felt so much energy [before],” he told i-D. “The pride, the sense of homeland that unites generations.” The tour will continue in November and include stops in Europe, Asia, and Oceania. Markedly missing from the lineup, however, is the United States. That decision, Bad Bunny said, wasn’t out of pettiness, but protection.

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“There were many reasons why I didn’t show up in the U.S., and none of them were out of hate,” Bad Bunny explained. “I’ve performed there many times. I’ve enjoyed connecting with Latinos who have been living in the United States.”

He added: “People from the U.S. could come here to see the show. Latinos and Puerto Ricans of the United States could also travel here, or to any part of the world. But there was the issue that…ICE could be outside (my concert venue). And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”

Bad Bunny has long centered people who’ve been marginalized—in word and deed. His most recent album, and the entire tour itself, is an homage to his home. According to Discover Puerto Rico, his shows have raked in more than $200 million for the island.

“We show the best of Puerto Rico and also the toughest or delicate things about Puerto Rico,” Bad Bunny told Today in August. “I think that’s the beauty of this show. That is very powerful and honest.”

While the notion of being unable to tour in the U.S. out of fear for the safety of your fans is terribly bleak, Bad Bunny deserves all the praise. While most high-profile touring musicians and their teams put profit over people at every turn, his decision not to demonstrates more than deep care, but an awareness that is sadly lacking in the ruling class—even as new investigations routinely make plain ICE’s pattern of carte blanche kidnapping and concentration camps. Can you imagine what positive change might come if other popular musicians boycotted touring in the U.S. for the same reason (or just general fascism)? Frankly, I’d love to see it!

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