Bad Bunny says goodbye to Puerto Rico in one final concert after a
historic residency
[September 22, 2025]
By DÁNICA COTO
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Bad Bunny fans drowned out memories of
Hurricane Maria in one booming voice on the anniversary of the
devastating storm.
Saturday was a concert for Puerto Ricans by Puerto Ricans to remind the
world about the power of “la isla del encanto” (“the island of
enchantment").
“We’re not going to quit. The entire world is watching!” Bad Bunny
thundered into his microphone as he looked into a camera streaming his
last show in Puerto Rico this year to viewers around the world following
a historic 30-concert residency in the U.S. territory.
The crowd roared as thousands watching via Amazon Music, Prime Video and
Twitch joined them, marking the first time Bad Bunny was streamed across
the globe.
The residency was more than just a series of concerts. Saturday marked
the end of an extended love letter that Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio
sang to Puerto Rico. He tapped into what it means to be Puerto Rican, to
delight in the island’s beauty, defend its land and fight for its
people.
“This is for you,” Bad Bunny said from the rooftop of an iconic Puerto
Rican house installed at the concert venue as he raised his glass and
the crowd raised their glasses in return.
‘We are still here’
Saturday marked the eighth anniversary of Hurricane Maria, which slammed
into Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm on Sept. 20, 2017.
An estimated 2,975 people died in the sweltering aftermath of the storm
that razed the island’s electric grid, leaving some communities without
power for up to a year. Anger and frustration over the pace of
reconstruction continues to simmer as chronic power outages persist.
In a Sept. 11 report, the U.S. Office of Inspector General found that
92% of approved and obligated projects related to Puerto Rico’s
crumbling grid were incomplete, and that $3.7 billion of available funds
had not been obligated.
“Over seven years after Hurricane Maria, FEMA does not know when Puerto
Rico’s electrical grid will be completely rebuilt. The grid remains
unstable, inadequate, and vulnerable to interruptions,” the report
stated.
On Saturday, the number of estimated deaths were imprinted on the back
of T-shirts and written on Puerto Rican flags that the crowd waved into
the air.
“We are still emotional and carry the trauma of having gone through a
horrible thing,” said Marta Amaral, 61, who attended Saturday’s concert.
“Beyond the sadness and remembering the negativity of having gone
through a traumatic event, this is a celebration that we are still here,
standing.”
A surprise guest
At every concert this summer, Bad Bunny invited new celebrities — among
them LeBron James, Penélope Cruz, Darren Aronofsky, DJ Khaled and Kylian
Mbappé — and sang with different musicians, including Rubén Blades,
Residente, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Rai Nao and Jorge Drexler.
But on Saturday, the noise from the crowd hit new levels as Bad Bunny
rapped with Puerto Rico heavyweights Ñengo Flow, Jowell y Randy, Dei V
and Arcángel and De la Ghetto. Thousands of fans flexed their knees in
unison to thumping rap and reggaetón.
Then, the crowd gasped in disbelief as Marc Anthony appeared on stage
after Bad Bunny pleaded with his fans to join him because he was going
to sing a song he hadn’t sung in public in some 20 years.
“Yo te quiero, Puerto Rico!” the crowd cried as the two singers embraced
at the end of the iconic song, “Preciosa,” whose lyrics say, “I love
you, Puerto Rico.”
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Bad Bunny performs during the final concert of his summer residency
in his homeland at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico Jose Miguel Agrelot,
in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025. (AP
Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
 ‘An emotional night’
Thousands gathered outside the concert venue on Saturday hours
before the concert, with Puerto Rico’s national flower, the vibrant
flor de maga, tucked behind their ear, and the traditional straw hat
known as the “pava,” set at a jaunty angle on their head.
But not all were celebrating.
Darlene Mercado milled around, asking strangers if they knew of
anyone with tickets she could buy for herself and her daughter, who
had flown in from New Jersey.
They were around number 122,000 in a virtual waiting line to buy
tickets for Saturday’s sold-out concert and weren’t able to get any
after waiting eight hours online.
“This is not only the anniversary of the hurricane, but it’s also
the anniversary of me no longer having cancer and it’s my birthday.
We wanted to celebrate everything with a bang,” she said.
Saturday’s concert was open only to residents of Puerto Rico, as
were the first nine concerts of Bad Bunny’s residency, but the
remainder was open to fans around the world.
Overall, the concerts attracted roughly half a million people,
generating an estimated $733 million for Puerto Rico, according to a
new study by Gaither International.
Most foreign visitors came from the Dominican Republic, Colombia and
Spain, with an average stay of nearly nine nights, the study found.
Overall, roughly 70% of concertgoers were female, with an average
age of 33, according to the study.
Among those attending was Shamira Oquendo.
“It’s going to be an emotional night,” the 25-year-old said, noting
that Hurricane Maria was her first hurricane. “It was very sad. A
lot of people around me lost their things.”
‘Yo soy boricua!’
Puerto Rico’s party with Bad Bunny ended early Sunday, but the
superstar who recently clinched 12 Latin Grammy nominations will go
on a worldwide tour in December, with concerts planned in countries
including Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, Spain, France and
Sweden. Notably, he is skipping the U.S., citing concerns over the
arrest of immigrants.
On Saturday, Bad Bunny thanked his fans for their love.
“I’m going to miss you a lot. I’m going to miss this energy,” he
said as he urged the crowd to embrace love no matter the situation.
At that moment, friends and family in the crowd began to hug each
other, some with tears in their eyes.
After more than three hours of singing with Bad Bunny, fans were not
quite ready to let go. As the crowd filed down the stairs and into
the night, one man yelled, “Yo soy boricua!” and the crowd
responded, “Pa’ que tú lo sepas!”
It’s a traditional cry-and-response yell that lets people around
them know they’re Puerto Rican and proud of it.
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