BY:Patricia TortolaniPHOTOGRAPHED BY:Camila Falquez
Yo soy Boricua, paque tu lo sepas.
I deliver the line in my best Cuban/Puerto Rican-raised-in-Miami Spanish.
Finally, I breathe.
Bad Bunnys language is a Caribbean Spanish punctuated with profanities, broken words, and highly particular regional phrases.
Viviana OOntanon short necklace.
Isa Noy long necklace.
Photographed by Camila Falquez.
Fashion stylist: Herin Choi.
Hair: Ybelka Hurtado.
Makeup: Frankie Boyd.
Manicure: Chary Reyes and Carla M Negron.
Chart-topping collaborations with Cardi B, Drake, and J Balvin soon followed.
Going shopping with my mom, I would get lost in the women’s department.
But its where Bad Bunny likes to hide out these days.
It says a lot that the shoot and the interview were here on the island.
Eres como la musa de Picasso, says Bad Bunny.
The table erupts into laughter.
(Cabron, which literally means male goat in Spanish, is slang for badass.)
Yes, the drawing is cabron.
Its difficult to fathom, he says.
Because people before me have done what I do, breaking rules and pushing boundaries.
But maybe I got here at the right time, with the right force, and everything aligned.
Among the viral hits onYHLQMDLGis Yo Perreo Sola, an anthem for girls who like to twerk in peace.
Its not the first time his gender-bending tendencies have made headlines.
My wrestling fight I’ve watched it a hundred times.
For a week, I would go to bed watching it.
My look wasnt part of any specific plan, he says.
Since I was young, I had it in me I just had to liberate it.
Bad Bunny describes a childhood spent playing with roosters, riding horses, and swimming in the river.
Going to the mall was a special occasion, he says.
And then it was my turn to buy clothes and it was boring as hell.
The same jeans and T-shirts, jeans and T-shirts in different sizes.
The women had it all!
Dont even get Bad Bunny started on the iniquity of purses.
A beat-up old wallet to stuff in your pocket.
There is no doubt that Bad Bunnys unconventionality has helped make fashion and beauty more fun for men.
Fendi jacket, shirt, and pants.
Joining WWE was a childhood dream realized.
Wed play that for hours.
Truly, wrestling has influenced me a lot, and Ive applied that to my career, he says.
In wrestling, the fans love getting caught off guard.
I like to create that same emotion with my music.
This was all leading up to his big fight.
It was like I died and went to heaven, he says.
Ive never sat to watch a recording of one of my concerts.
Butmy wrestling fight Ive watched it a hundred times.
For like a week, I would go to bed watching it.
Now that guy looks good, says Bad Bunny of the 57-year-old Oscar-winner.
When I turn 30 Im going to start taking care of my skin and my face.
Maybe Ill start doing some small aesthetic things orplant some more hairon my head, he muses.
The truth is Bad Bunny will do whatever he damn well pleases.
When I look up, its not a raucous house party blazing up this Saturday night.
Its an abuelita in her rocker, tapping her foot to the reggaeton beat.
Para leer este articulo en espanol, haz clicaqui.
Rick Owens from MATCHESFASHION top.
Shoes, stylists own.
Jewelry, Bad Bunnys own.
This story originally appeared in Allure’s November 2021 issue.
