Bad Bunny Heals My Inner Child | Grammy Awards 2023
There are quite a few versions of myself that I am embarrassed by.
Most notably, the Jr. High version of myself immediately comes to mind. She was easily peer-pressured and lacked in the self-confidence department. This version of me included a deep embarrassment over the color of my skin, my culture, and the fact that my mother only spoke Spanish. I refused to invite any friends to my house, I despised parent-teacher conferences and I started hating having to go to Mexico over the summer. I was a fool; you’re all thinking it so I’ll save you the trouble and say it out loud.
When I was in the 7th grade, I have a memory of my girlfriends standing around in a circle comparing the complexion of their arms. They asked me to join and they immediately pointed out that I was the darkest girl in the group. It’s the way their faces contorted when they pointed it out that made me immediately pull down the sleeves on my sweater. Though they didn’t actually make any horrible comments about it, I knew that being the darkest girl was not considered a good thing. That night I took a shower and scrubbed my arms and legs until they turned red.
That young and impressionable 7th grader would have greatly benefited from watching Bad Bunny open the 2023 Grammy Awards.
I know we’re all still feeling the frustrations that came with watching certain people win on Sunday night, but please allow me a moment of celebration. My favorite thing about Bad Bunny is that he refuses to make himself more palpable for the American media. He is unapologetically Puertorriqueño and in that, is helping the younger generations take all of the necessary space in every single room they walk into. Though I consider Bad Bunny opening the Grammys in Spanish a win for the cultura; the truth is that Bad Bunny put Puerto Rican and Dominican culture on full display. His performance was a display and celebration of Caribbean culture and we need to be aware of the distinction.
I know that the Grammy Awards keep trying to convince us of their credibility but every time they snub a Beyoncé or a Bad Bunny, they lose any faith we had in the Recording Academy. Here’s the thing about Bad Bunny (and Beyoncé), his talent transcends any and all awards. His impact has been record-breaking and no awards show can ever take that away from him or us. The Grammys insist on calling themselves the “biggest night in music” but I would argue that the biggest night in music was when Bad Bunny earned a record-breaking 14.109 million with the concert at Soldier Field in Chicago on August 20, 2022. It was the HIGHEST GROSSING concert by a Latin artist in history, surpassing HIMSELF in Miami (11.25 million).
I know there are remnants of 7th-grade Julie floating in and out of different things I do. So in the moments that I find myself being the only Mexican in the room and I feel how I slowly back into the corner as I try to blend in, I’ll remind myself that I should take up all the space. I will picture Bad Bunny proudly giving his acceptance speech in English and Spanish and I’ll refuse to shrink myself down.
That is Bad Bunny’s impact.
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