Joe Coscarelli

Coscarelli characterizes Bad Bunny as nimble, savvy and hard to pin down, speaking out when he feels he must rather than on demand.

“He may not speak out when you want him to, but he speaks out when he feels like he needs to”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 48:29

Coscarelli argues that Bad Bunny's political statements come across as authentic because he speaks only on issues personally meaningful to him.

“he's speaking about issues that are meaningful to him personally. And I think that comes across any time he decides he's going to stand up and say something”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 23:56

Coscarelli argues the album's tight narrative does make it a concept album, comparing it to Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.

“would go so far as to call it a concept album”

The Daily: Popcast: Olivia Rodrigo Tried Writing Love Songs. Then Life Got Messy. (May 31, 2026) · Listen from 12:11

Coscarelli argues that Bad Bunny is not a crazy choice but the only choice, as the most relevant figure in music.

“he is the most relevant man in music so why wouldn't you put him on the stage that is all about maintaining and amplifying relevance”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 39:58

Coscarelli explains that the NFL brought in Jay-Z's Roc Nation as a partner to select halftime performers, and that Jay-Z faced backlash but framed it as change from the inside.

“Jay-Z immediately faces a ton of backlash for this. He had previously been a supporter of Colin Kaepernick's and people say he sold out”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 33:19

Coscarelli says the NFL's handling of Kaepernick hurt its ability to book relevant Black artists for the halftime show.

“that was reflected in part by its inability to book black and relevant acts for its halftime show”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 30:09

Coscarelli recounts that Bad Bunny canceled European tour dates to join the 2019 protests, which contributed to the governor's resignation.

“Bad Bunny says, my people need me. I'm going to be beside them. And in part because of these protests, the governor ends up resigning”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 23:26

Coscarelli describes Debí Tirar Más Fotos as an album of memory, a breakup record, and a reflection on being away from Puerto Rico.

“This is an album of memory. It's called I Should Have Taken More Photos. It's a breakup album, but it's also an album about being away from Puerto Rico”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 17:36

Coscarelli argues that Despacito's 2017 success proved there was a large enough audience to sustain pop music in languages other than English.

“This was a toothpaste out of the tube moment for Latin music or pop music in any language besides English, in which it became clear that there was a big enough audience to sustain it”

The Daily: Bad Bunny Takes Over America (Feb 1, 2026) · Listen from 13:29