BY: JAEQWON SUAREZ/ DEPUTY ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Bad Bunny has come back from his break with another album after his last one Un Verano Sin Ti, which was nominated for album of the year for the 2023 Grammy’s.
This album is similar to his recent one, in which it is about an hour and 20 minutes of listening time, except for the difference between his Un Verano Sin Ti and Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va A Pasar Manaña is the drastic change of genres.
While Un Verano Sin Ti tapped into many genres and cultures, it appears that what the audience got this time around was more of his older music and what he used to do, such as Latin rap or urban trap.
Whether you loved it or hate it, I think this album was the perfect time for Bad Bunny to reconnect to his audience that has always been there for him while introducing the newer fans to what he used to do.
The first track is six minutes long and addresses a lot within that period. Nadie Sabe was an excellent opener to the album, as it’s just Bad Bunny's voice being the main focus over the strings as he expresses his emotions about fame.
Nadie Sabe feels like a warning letter to listeners to know that whatever they’re expecting to just go ahead and drop those ideas. He talks about many famous people in his song thanking them or just bringing them up to let the audience know that he is not them and will never be them.
It was also really interesting to hear him talk about the situations that he has had fans and how that makes him feel. For example, he mentions when one of his fans tried to take a picture of him while he was casually out and he threw the fan’s phone.
He claims that people like that aren’t really his fans and even states in the opener that he didn’t make this album for them, but for his real fans who understand.
Even then, he still questions if his real fans will get it because although he can talk about the people who treat him like an item to admire from afar, his real fans also give him love and hate as well.
In just six minutes, he made huge points, and my favorite that summarizes what kind of person Bad Bunny is now is:
“Yo puedo mudarme de PR
Pero PR de mi alma nunca se podrá mudar”
After that amazing introduction is Monaco, which is in my top five to listen to off this album. Do you know that one person who brags about having everything they’ve ever wanted? That is what this song encaptures perfectly.
One of my favorite elements of this song is the samples that he uses because it just adds to this vibe of “I’m better than you but I’m still the same old me”. He even says in one of his lyrics that you guys want trap? He certainly delivered it in his way and style.
The chorus is also catchy and playful. My favorite is when he says money is his new zodiac sign.
After that, we have another great song, FINA. If you understand Spanish, I won’t have to say too much about this. But for the people who may not understand, just know it’s all about hyping yourself up and not caring what other people think.
I like the message that he tries to get across and the little connections that he’s making with the name of the album and who he has featured. He has a new up-and-coming artist Young Miko, who is from Puerto Rico, and a famous Puerto Rican rapper Tego Calderón, who he had mentioned in the introduction of the album where he gets his flow from.
It was a smart choice to choose these too, especially because this song embodies the message that not everyone is going to love you, so go ahead and just be yourself. After all, nobody knows what is going to happen tomorrow.
HIBIKI is another song with a feature reminiscing about how you miss a girl. This is one of the few songs that takes a break from the trap genre that is heavily represented in this album.
I like this song as it gives the album some breathing room to be more than trap, as we will see later on. Mora, who was the artist that was featured here, did great and I liked his verse.
HIBIKI is definitely in the top 10 first-time listening through and adds this sense of how addicting and enticing something or someone can be.
Next, we have Mr.October and that puts us right back into trap. I also liked this song the first time I listened through. To me, it feels like Monaco but less on the classy and rich part and more about how rewarding it is to put in the hard work to make it out.
My favorite part is his chorus and which he says:
“Mira cómo me muevo (Whew-whew), cabrón, yo cambié el juego”
So far into the album, each song has given the audience important messages about life, and I think the takeaway from Mr.October is the idea to teach the younger generation how to make it as well so that Bad Bunny’s not alone at the top.
This song has made its way to one of my top five, which is Cybertruck. Cybertruck talks about Puerto Rico and the culture that happens there, but he’s also telling this woman to not compare him to the normal people that live there because he isn’t like them.
The drill beat on this track is incredible and it just makes you want to get up and dance. I also like these songs because it also feels like we get to imagine what life had to be like for Bad Bunny before he was famous.
That could also be the reason why he says in the chorus that he doesn’t compare to the others because he has done so much to help his people and show the world his culture.
After that, we have a song that is competing for the top spot on my list, and that is none other than VOU 787. It is short and sweet, which is something that I love and hate at the same time because it is that good.
He describes his unique style, but I also think it’s him realizing his impact on the music industry and how far he has come, having been featured in Vogue and having relationships with many Vogue models.
He even samples Tokischa and she introduces how “flow” also means style, which I think Bad Bunny was also trying to portray and execute well so far in this album. I also think it applies to every artist in some way, because the way you sing or rap also influences your style and how you show yourself to the world and your fans.
Seda adds a unique mixture of R&B and trap elements all the while singing a sexual yet sensual song. Bryant Myers is featured on this song, and combined with Bad Bunny, they both make this track amazing.
I especially love the drums on this track as I think they complement the words that both of these artists are saying. The smoothness is balanced out with how vulgar both of these artists are on Seda.
Of course, nothing truly lasts forever, and having Gracias Por Nada right after Seda was clever. To adore the person you’re in love with only to find out that he/she is cheating on you is heartbreaking.
Bad Bunny has always done great with his sad songs, and this one is no exception. His voice and the lyrics have so much emotion behind them, and it does feel like it has been a lie this whole time for him.
We even see this in the chorus because he’s not angry, he’s more disappointed and wants nothing to do with her. My favorite lyric was about beauty, because as he puts it:
“Tú estás buena, pero eso no es belleza
Bonito es que siempre digan la verdad”
We then have our second six-minute song titled Teléfono Nuevo featuring Luar la L. The intro of the song is Bad Bunny realizing that he isn’t satisfied, even though he has so many people who look up to him now.
The best part is when the beat switches up and we get pure trap. The transition was clever as well, as the song in English means “New Phone” and he made it seem like a call was going on.
The switch-up could be Bad Bunny coming to his senses after hanging out with Luar la L, who gets two verses before Bad Bunny comes back in to end it, so it could be that while he may feel like a “sheep” or his heart is locked up behind a cage, he chooses to suppress it for the time being.
This seems more apparent with Baby Nueva. This song has become one of my favorites landing in the top 10 simply because of the synths.
The song feels like a huge build-up to something as if he has been waiting to get this off his chest. Some lyrics I found interesting while listening to this again were in the Pre-chorus:
“Y si tú pensaba' que por ti estaba sufriendo
Será que no me has visto en la calle rompiendo”
Connecting back to the previous song, in which he is out on the streets with a new crew and a different attitude. He has moved on from this girl and told her that she can do whatever she wants, but she’d never be able to win him back.
The outro also fits it as well, as there is no drop but rather an ending note that makes you feel satisfied and not wanting more.
He talks more about where he is from and the streets of Puerto Rico in Mercedes Carota. This song has a feature as well, which is YOVNGCHIMI.
This track does an excellent job lyrically with the trap beat behind the artist’s vocals complementing their voices. I like the simplicity of it because not every song needs to stand out, but it helps tell the story Bad Bunny is trying to have his listeners envision.
That being said, Los Pits is a surprisingly good track. After listening to it a couple of times it started to grow on me, and I like the concept of Bad Bunny being a DJ at a club towards the end of the song.
He even used sound effects that are associated with radio stations that try to rile people up to dance and party. With a catchy chorus, how could you not want to get up and dance?
Vuelve Candy B also has a catchy chorus as well. The story of this song follows closely that of Los Pits in the sense that they both talk about how fame isn’t something Bad Bunny worries about now.
Even in the chorus, he says how he feels mocked that people around him can say they don’t know who he is or how he’s not famous, all the while he still feels bored at the top because he is all alone thanks to the people who were able to push him up there.
The next song that’s competing with the number one spot on my list with Vou 787 at the moment is Baticano. Baticano has an amazing bass that moves the song along, sometimes matching Bad Bunny as he raps or staying in its slow rhythmic tempo.
Bad Bunny knows how to get vulgar and yet sound so good at the same time. There aren’t many lyrics from this song that I can pick out without it immediately needing context, but a funny line that stood out to me was when he started to name the Teletubbies, which is a kid’s show.
It shares many themes with Fina, only now we are expanding it and talking about religion shouldn’t interfere with a person wanting to have fun.
Bad Bunny even starts off the song by saying that the parents and people who think talking about sex or toxic relationships are inherently hellish, but he wasn’t the one to come up with the idea of sex or smoking marijuana.
Many people want someone to blame, and they often put that blame on celebrities because they influence kids and teenagers. Bad Bunny flips it upside down and decides to not care. He will, as he says in his song, keep on sinning.
No Me Quiero Casar continues with the idea of freedom that Bad Bunny chases. This song samples the classic Hey Girl by Frankie Boy and La Calle Me la Pidió by Yandel and Tego Calderón.
This song lands as my third favorite off of the entire album. The beat makes you want to get up and dance, and the way he samples both songs to go along with what he wants to say is incredible.
This song is more about Bad Bunny being with himself, as the title translates to “I don’t want to be married”. He still has a lot of exploring he has to do, and it's very apparent that while he may want someone, now isn’t the time to settle down.
After all, he’s exploring his sexuality as well as warning future girls that he may be in a relationship with whom he will cheat and be out and about on the streets.
The lead single off the album, Where She Goes is another banger and has since been popular even after its release. The song also involves drill elements within it, making you want to pop and lock as you listen.
The lyrics are meaningful, as he is talking about how he misses a girl but doesn’t want to be the one to give in first or to text first. In the end, he wins, but the final chorus changes as if he’s talking to her, saying that he never forgot her even after all that time.
Thunder Y Lightning follows a Latin drill beat and features Eladio Carrión. The name is based on two Puerto Rican wrestlers who are famous on the island and contributed to the growth of Lucha Libre.
This song makes sense for Bad Bunny because he is a huge fan of wrestling. The verses that he shares with Carrión feel like a tag team match, as the song title implies.
It is them against the world, and Bad Bunny makes sure to call those people out.
The next song is another one of my favorites and features Feid. Perro Negro is the perfect song to go to a club and dance, as it is also ironically talking about a club.
While it is Bad Bunny talking about a girl again, the beat behind the lyrics makes you feel as though you are in a club, and that’s such an insane effect that it can have on the listeners.
The next track is an eleven-second interlude called Europa :( that ties into Acho PR. Acho PR is all about celebrating the people who were always there for you, even before they were famous.
The track includes three other artists, that being Arcángel, De La Ghetto, and Ñengo Flow. It is also the last six-minute song, ending with a verse from Bad Bunny reminiscing about the music he listened to growing up and how he’s happy that he was able to make it to where he is today.
One thing to note in all three songs that were six minutes is they all follow the idea of not knowing what will happen tomorrow. He always focuses on the moment rather than what going to happen in the future, because there is no use worrying about something that hasn’t happened yet, and his final track sums it all up perfectly.
Un Preview was the second single he released for the album and acts as the end, or a “preview” into what the artist has planned for the future.
Returning to reggaeton, the song is all about not being afraid to fall in love with a girl, even if he does end up single again. This could be interpreted as a new journey that Bad Bunny is going through, and him saying that proves the future might have a lot stored for him.
Overall, the album was a great listen the first time around and there were a lot of great picks that will have you wanting to get up and dance or rap for six minutes straight.
Bad Bunny has clearly shown a lot of love and passion in this project, and with over an hour of listening time, you’ll never get bored listening to the album, whether that be in order or shuffled.