Bad Bunny,‘ A Pop Culture Figure That Transcends Boundaries,' Gets Graduate Class at San Diego State University

The class on Bad Bunny will be a graduate-level course that will be offered in Spring 2023. Dr. Nate Rodriguez also offers an undergraduate class on Late Tejano superstar, Selena Quintanilla

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Ever wanted to take a class on your favorite global superstar? Well, students at San Diego State University can. The college will offer a graduate class on Latin superstar Bad Bunny in 2023 that focuses on his impact on Latino culture and media.

“Bad Bunny is important at San Diego State University because he is a global icon. He is this pop culture figure that has transcended music, movies, and wrestling,” SDSU Associate Professor of Digital Media Studies, Dr. Nate Rodriguez said. “He is a point of reference for tons of people to talk about culture, to talk about advocacy, to talk about politics.”

Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, known professionally as Bad Bunny, is a Grammy award-winning Puerto Rican rapper and singer who quickly rose to fame after starting out releasing his songs on SoundCloud. 

The class on Bad Bunny will be a graduate-level course that will be offered in Spring 2023. Registration for the class will open sometime in November.

“It's a graduate level course, which allows us to dive a little bit deeper and get a little bit more critical into those really, really heightened issues that we're gonna be discussing. It allows students to get a little bit more critical into those issues that Bad Bunny covers in his music,” Rodriguez said. 

Bad Bunny released his "El Apagón" music video this month, in which he discusses several issues facing Puerto Rico, including the displacement of Puerto Ricans by U.S. Americans, the electricity crisis, and the fight to keep the beaches public. 

Although Rodriguez is still putting together the curriculum, he anticipates discussing issues of masculinity, colonialism, and displacement, especially in Puerto Rico. Students will also analyze his music videos, and lyrics, in class.

Bad Bunny in Petco Park on Sept. 17, 2022.

“Everybody wants to take a course on Bad Bunny just because it's Bad Bunny. But I think at a deeper level, San Diego State University is an HSI, a Hispanic Serving Institution and I think the Latinx, Latin population here wants to see themselves represented,” he said. 

In addition, he says that the negative responses to the course are proof of its importance.

"And I think the negative comments that are happening on social media about a course like this only exemplify the need for a course like this," he said. "I think that a course that teaches students how to be proud of their culture and teaches the community about important issues like colonization, displacement, issues of statehood in Puerto Rico, culture, language, racism, and xenophobia is important because we're experiencing it and we're seeing it play out in the real world day today."

Bad Bunny just had two sold-out shows at Petco Park last weekend where San Diegans showed up in droves.

“I’m up there on the chairs. I’m everywhere. I’ll be dancing and singing my heart out,” fan Valerie Barbosa told NBC 7 before the concert.

Rodriguez also offers other classes on popular Latin artists, including the Late Tejana superstar Selena Quintanilla.

“[It was] the first of its kind and we offer it every single year. Students love it. The response is huge and every time somebody goes through that course, they learn not just about Selena, it's more about that, it's about representation in the media, how we see ourselves, and how Selena is still that global figure,” he said. 

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