Bad Bunny's Electric Pole Dance Sparks Debate Over Puerto Rico's Power Grid

Conservative activist Laura Loomer criticized the performance, but was roasted by X Community Notes for missing the point.

Published on Feb. 10, 2026

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

During his Super Bowl halftime show performance, Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny incorporated a segment where dancers dressed as utility workers struggled to repair electric poles amid flickering lights. Conservative commentator Laura Loomer criticized this as "degeneracy," arguing that Bad Bunny should have used his platform to highlight Puerto Rico's ongoing electricity crisis. However, the X Community Notes system quickly pushed back, explaining that the performance was intended to symbolize the island's problematic power grid, which has been plagued by frequent outages and reliability issues since Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Why it matters

Bad Bunny's halftime show performance was a pointed reference to the longstanding challenges Puerto Rico has faced in maintaining a reliable electricity supply, an issue that has only worsened since the privatization of the power grid. The backlash to Loomer's criticism highlights how artists are increasingly using high-profile platforms to draw attention to important social and political issues.

The details

During his Super Bowl LX halftime show set, Bad Bunny performed his 2022 track "El Apagón" ("The Blackout"), which featured a sequence where dancers dressed as utility workers appeared to struggle to repair electric poles as sparks flew and lights flickered. This was a symbolic reference to the frequent power outages that have plagued Puerto Rico in recent years, particularly since Hurricane Maria devastated the island's infrastructure in 2017.

  • In 2017, Hurricane Maria caused widespread damage to Puerto Rico's power grid, leading to one of the longest blackouts in the island's history.
  • In 2021, the Puerto Rican government privatized the transmission and distribution of electricity, awarding a major contract to the LUMA Energy consortium.
  • In the years since privatization, Puerto Ricans have continued to face frequent and prolonged power outages, with major island-wide blackouts occurring as recently as 2024.

The players

Bad Bunny

A Puerto Rican superstar musician who headlined the Super Bowl LX halftime show and incorporated references to the island's electricity crisis into his performance.

Laura Loomer

A conservative activist who criticized Bad Bunny's performance, arguing that he should have used his platform to highlight the electricity crisis in Puerto Rico rather than engage in "degeneracy."

X Community Notes

A consensus-based system on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that provides additional context and fact-checking on posts, which in this case pushed back on Loomer's criticism of Bad Bunny's performance.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“Spectacularly missing the point. That song is about the corrupt deal the Puerto Rican government made with the electricity provider... and yet the Puerto Rican people persevere.”

— Steve Parello (X)

“You just proved his point, genius...that's what they were highlighting...oh no Loomer, you've been WOKED!”

— Surgite (X)

What’s next

The Puerto Rican government has filed a lawsuit seeking to terminate LUMA Energy's contract to manage the island's power grid, citing the company's failure to modernize the infrastructure and rising electricity rates for residents.

The takeaway

Bad Bunny's halftime show performance served as a powerful statement about the ongoing struggles Puerto Rico faces in maintaining a reliable electricity supply, an issue that has only worsened since the privatization of the power grid. The backlash to Loomer's criticism highlights how artists are increasingly using high-profile platforms to draw attention to important social and political issues.