Bad Bunny is focused less on spectacle and more on feeling as he prepares to headline the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show.

In a new interview with Access Hollywood’s Scott Evans, the global superstar, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, opened up about the mindset behind his highly anticipated halftime performance, reflecting on his journey from bagging groceries to one of the biggest stages in the world.

“I just want to be there,” Bad Bunny said when asked how he’s feeling in the final days before the show. “I’m just ready to do it. I want to feel it. I want people to watch it and enjoy it.”

Selecting the setlist for the halftime performance proved to be one of the biggest challenges. “That was tough,” he admitted. “Even for my shows on tour, it’s hard to pick 30 or 40 songs. So imagine for 30 minutes. It was very hard. The selection process was very intense.”

Rather than focusing on hits alone, Bad Bunny said he approached the show as a storytelling exercise. “I had a vision about the story, the mood, and the feelings that I want to put on that show,” he explained. “I want people to feel happiness and joy. I want to make people dance. I want to make them feel proud and think that everything is possible.”

The interview also revisited where Bad Bunny was just a decade ago. In 2016, he was working at a grocery store while making beats on the side — a reality he says still shapes his perspective.

“That’s true. I was working in a grocery store, making beats at the same time,” he said. “Broke, with a lot of dreams and goals. And now I’m still dreaming. I’m still enjoying this. I’m still doing this with the same passion and the same love as the first day, before I got popular or successful.”

When the call came confirming he would headline the Super Bowl halftime show, Bad Bunny said he was at the gym — and didn’t tell anyone right away. “Nobody,” he said when asked who he called first. “Not even my mom and dad. I always keep everything secret until I know it’s official.”

Fresh off the 2026 Grammy Awards, where he added three more trophies to his career total, Bad Bunny also shared a moment with Lady Gaga that stuck with him. “She said, ‘I love you,’” he recalled. “And I was like, ‘I love you too.’ I always get very emotional when I see her. I admire her a lot.”

As for what he hopes audiences take away once his time on stage ends, Bad Bunny kept it simple. “That I’m an honest artist. That I’m myself. That I don’t act to be anything that I’m not,” he said. “That I’m proud of who I am and where I come from. The music is universal. You can connect heart to heart with a song, even without lyrics.”

He added: “I’m just a normal guy that makes music.”

Bad Bunny will headline the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show on Sunday, Feb. 8, during Super Bowl LX, airing on NBC and Peacock.

Just one day after a California legislator introduced a proposal that would cap concert ticket resale prices at 10% above face value, a New York lawmaker followed suit with an even stricter bill that aims to completely outlaw markups on the secondary market.

New York state senator James Skoufis proposed the ban as part of a Friday (Feb. 6) amendment to the Affordable Concert Act, an already-pending bill. Introduced in May 2025, the Affordable Concert Act would create licensing requirements for ticket resellers and outlaw speculative ticketing — the controversial practice of resellers listing tickets they don’t have yet.

First reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Skoufis’ Friday amendment to that bill would also make it illegal for brokers to resell tickets for New York live music events above face value, meaning secondary ticket prices would max out at the cost of the original ticket, plus fees from the primary ticketing source. Sporting event tickets are not covered by the proposed legislation.

“New Yorkers are sick and tired of the nightmarish process it takes to simply go see their favorite artist,” wrote Skoufis in a social media post Friday. “My bill, The Affordable Concert Act, caps all resale concert tickets at face value, among many other much-needed reforms. It’s time for state government to step up and protect fans.”

The New York amendment was brought up just one day after California state assemblyman Matt Haney introduced a spot bill (that is, an initial proposal still requiring more legal guidance) that would cap concert resale ticket prices in the Golden State at 10% above face value. Like New York, California already had a pending bill that aims to ban speculative ticketing.

So far, Maine is the only U.S. state to have a law governing ticket resale prices on the books — a 10% cap passed in 2025. Other U.S. states, such as Washington, have introduced similar legislative proposals. On a national level, Donald Trump-allied artist Kid Rock advocated for nationwide resale price caps during his testimony on Capitol Hill last week.

“I’m a capitalist, I’m a deregulation guy, but there’s no other way around this but to put a price cap on this,” Rock told members of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on Jan. 28.  

Secondary ticket price caps are on the books in numerous European countries and Australia. The U.K. announced plans for a resale markup ban of its own this past November.

Neil Young is canceling his planned 2026 tour dates with the Chrome Hearts in the U.K. and Europe, apologizing to fans in a message on his website Friday (Feb. 6) while adding “this is not the time.”

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer posted “A message from Neil” to his site, explaining that he’s chosen to sit this one out.

“I have decided to take a break and will not be touring Europe this time,” the message begins. “Thanks to everyone who bought tickets. I’m sorry to let you down, but this is not the time. I do love playing LIVE and being with you and the Chrome Hearts.”

He signed the note: “LOVE Neil” and “be well.”

The tour was set to kick off June 17 in Bodelva, England, and was scheduled through July 26 in Udine, Italy. Elvis Costello and the Imposters were set to open on select dates. Young’s Chrome Hearts band includes guitarist Micah Nelson, bassist Corey McCormick, drummer Anthony Logerfo and organist Spooner Oldham.

The cancellation comes after an active month for Young, who made headlines in January when he pledged to give his music to anyone in Greenland after President Trump’s administration announced plans to seek U.S. control of the island nation.

“I hope my music and music films will ease some of the unwarranted stress and threats you are experiencing from our unpopular and hopefully temporary government,” Young wrote in a message offering a year of free access to his catalog. “It is my sincere wish for you to be able to enjoy all of my music in your beautiful Greenland home, in its highest quality. This is an offer of Peace and Love.”

Young continued: “All the music I have made during the last 62 years is yours to hear. You can renew for free as long as you are in Greenland. We do hope other organizations will follow in the spirit of our example.”

The rock legend also spoke out against Apple, Verizon and T-Mobile for supporting the “fascist Trump regime.”

The country music industry has made greater effort in recent years to understand – and court – potential minority consumers. In that context, the decision by a handful of country artists to perform during Turning Point USA’s “All-American Halftime Show,” an alternative to the NFL’s official Super Bowl halftime entertainment, threatens to undermine the country industry’s efforts to widen its appeal.

TPUSA chairwoman/CEO Erika Kirk announced plans to hold the show specifically after Bad Bunny – a bilingual superstar from Puerto Rico, an American territory – was announced as the Super Bowl’s halftime headliner. Over the ensuing months, TPUSA lined up Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett for its counter-programming. Kirk has subsequently referred to her organization’s event as a “pro-American” alternative, a characterization that implies Bad Bunny is somehow un-American.

“This is one of the most divisive events that I can think of,” says Middle Tennessee State University Media and Entertainment dean Beverly Keel. “It’s clear what they’re doing. It is the white alternative to an American artist of Puerto Rican descent, so they’re not vague in their messaging, the event programmers.”

It’s not clear if the three country artists on the bill fully understood the impact of their decision to perform. The participation of Kid Rock, who is a multi-genre artist with a penchant for provocation, seems on point for his brand. The country acts declined to comment for this story. Brice, however, spoke to Fox News, saying the event provided an opportunity to “be a part of something that I believe in.”

He specifically cited the memory of TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, who was killed in September during a public event at Utah Valley University in Orem.

“Charlie Kirk wanted everybody to have a microphone,” Brice said, calling the alternative halftime show “a celebration of what he believed in and what he brought to the table. And I’m just proud, you know? I’m proud to be an American, and I’m excited. I’m a musician. I get to go play music.”

Kirk, however, was more controversial than that characterization suggests. He was generally edited in conservative media in a way that made him an icon for freedom of speech, but some of his speech created critics who viewed him as racist, homophobic and misogynistic.

The artists performing on the “All-American Halftime Show” have every right to be there, but fears exist that they will be seen less as individual artists by some consumers than as a representation of country music. If those consumers see Kirk in the harsher framework and associate him with the whole of country, it could damage the genre as a whole.

“An artist has a right to do whatever they want to, as long as they understand the pros and cons and the consequences that come with that,” says Triple 8 Management artist manager Scott Stem. “My concern on this one is did they [know the direction] that Turning Point was going to take, as far as saying it’s a ‘pro-American’ thing when Turning Point is trying to turn it as an anti-Bad Bunny thing? Bad Bunny is most definitely American. He’s Puerto Rican.”

Several other country acts were approached about participating in the Turning Point event, notes F2 Entertainment president/CEO Fletcher Foster, and they balked at the opportunity, presumably believing the likely controversy outweighed the benefit of performing on national TV. Every artist has to make decisions about their participation based on their own circumstances. They are not required, said several people interviewed for this story, to factor in the impact of their decisions on the industry overall.

“Hopefully, most artists know who their base is already,” Foster says. “Whether it be extreme left, extreme right, right in the middle, you know, are they happy with that? Or do they want to grow it? I think that’s a lot of the questions. Are they fine with potentially alienating another audience?”

In the current cultural atmosphere, it is difficult to avoid those issues without appearing wishy-washy. The political parties are extremely bifurcated, and art reflects the society in which it’s created.

“If music is going to be honest and authentic, then in a polarized society, it’s gonna go left [or] right,” suggests Culture at Large podcaster Marcus K. Dowling. “There’s no way you could say, ‘OK, I’m making a song that occupies the middle.’”

Country music executives are working to make the genre an inclusive, big-tent format, and while that specifically means outreach to progressive-minded fans and/or non-white demographics, that also means that the industry should not knock the conservative voices in its midst.

 “You can’t exclude somebody from that tent,” Dowling says. “Now, they could all stand in a corner of the tent, of course, because it’s the biggest tent. That’s the issue. I think that if you are a liberal-minded, non-conservative country music fan, when you say it’s the biggest tent, it’s the most inclusive it’s ever been. Inclusivity works both ways.”

Gilbert posted a message on Instagram on Friday (Feb. 6) that sought to separate his motivations from the hostility that birthed the event.

“I respect that some people may see this differently, but I’m not playing this show to be divisive,” he said. “I was offered this opportunity and imagined my kids watching their daddy perform at halftime during the biggest game in American football.”

“The way I treat people isn’t conditional based on what our differences may be,” he added. “I believe ‘united we stand, divided we fall,’ and my prayer for our country is that we stand united.”

Unfortunately, country music has a history that is less than welcoming. Until 2008, Charley Pride was the only Black artist to become a consistent hitmaker, and even then, Darius Rucker faced pushback from skeptical gatekeepers and fielded racist social media commentary, too. He succeeded despite those voices, and since then, country’s mainstream has also opened to Kane Brown, BRELAND, Jimmie Allen (whose momentum tanked after he was sued for sexual abuse), Blanco Brown and Shaboozey, who has notched two No. 1 singles on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart. Shaboozey gave an emotional speech after winning a Grammy during the pre-show ceremony on Feb. 1, noting the sacrifices made by his mother, a recently retired Nigerian immigrant who worked as a registered nurse in a hospital psychiatric ward while raising her children.

He dedicated his win to immigrants: “Thank you for bringing your culture, your music, your stories and your traditions here. You give America color.”

Reflecting the whole of America, numerous firms and organizations – including the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music – have developed programs in recent years to heighten opportunities for women, LGBTQ+ creators, and artists and executives of color. The fear surrounding the “All-American Halftime Show” is that the baggage that many associate with Turning Point might taint perceptions of country’s willingness to welcome everyone into its tent. One hope that’s been expressed repeatedly is that fans associate the event with Kid Rock as the headliner and are able to separate country from the TPUSA brand.

“I firmly believe that everybody loves a country music song, even if they don’t always want to admit it,” Stem says. “And I think that if you’re interested in exploring the genre, you’re going to explore it. The great thing about country music is it’s wide, and there’s a huge diversity there. There’s conservative artists and there’s liberal artists, and there’s songs for everybody all the way between.”

The challenge for the genre is to make that message clear, even when events or individual artists’ partnerships feed some of its stereotypical narratives.

Sheryl Crow is joining in on the calls for President Donald Trump to face consequences for his ties to convicted child sex offender and rapist Jeffrey Epstein, whose communications with a network of friends and accomplices were recently exposed in the publication of 3 million pages of Justice Department documents.

In a post on her Instagram Story, the singer-songwriter wrote, “Those named in the Epstein files in other countries are going down hard for it. Not in America.”

“We’re just going to act like it never happened or that it’s fake,” she continued. “Who are we if we do not stand up for children who are knowingly being [peddled] to rich leaders all over the world. Trump needs to be impeached and imprisoned along with every other person … Democrat, Republican, American or foreign who knew this was going on and never said anything.”

Billboard has reached out to the White House for comment.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing in connection to Epstein, and DOJ deputy attorney general Todd Blanche said Sunday that there was not cause to explore further investigation into the president’s involvement. But Trump, first lady Melania Trump and their Mar-a-Lago residence were mentioned a number of times in the files — at least 38,000, according to The New York Times.

Jack White has also slammed Trump in the wake of the Epstein files release. “Indict this man. Jail this man. This longtime friend of pedophile epstein, who appears 40 thousand times in the files,” the White Stripes rocker sounded off in a recent Instagram post about Trump’s posting of a since-deleted racist video depicting Michelle and Barack Obama as apes.

Both White and Crow have long been vocal in their opposition to the Trump administration. Last July, the “All I Wanna Do” singer released a searing anthem titled “The New Normal” protesting the politician’s leadership, singing, “Is it science fiction or prediction wrapped in George Orwell?/ If the news is fake and fear is hate and nothing’s immoral/ To the leader of the free world, then welcome to the new normal.”