Why Bad Bunny Said His Quick Success Felt Like He Was ‘in a Coma’
Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny first started making music in the mid-2010s. His star continued to rise with each passing year, transforming into a global superstar in the late 2010s and early 2020s. His seemingly overnight journey to stardom caught him by surprise.
Bad Bunny worked bagging groceries before he was famous
Before he was the world-famous superstar Bad Bunny, he was Benito Martínez Ocasio, working at a local grocery store in Puerto Rico as a bag boy. In a 2018 interview with People, he reflected on how the job played in integral part in the beginning of his career.
“All I wanted was for my shift to end so I could go home,” he said. “It was really motivating…because you never really want to be doing that. All you want is to reach your dreams and earn money doing what you like.”
“It served as motivation when it came to making music,” he continued. “There were also a lot of songs that I started creating while working [at the supermarket]. I would write songs outside or in my mind and then I would sing them multiple times throughout my shift to just remember the lyrics.”
He felt like he was ‘in a coma’ in the early days of his success
After becoming a world-famous reggaeton star, Bad Bunny still remained humble and didn’t leave his old friends behind. He spoke about staying true to who he always was in a 2022 interview with GQ.
“Many artists become famous, and they suddenly start to change their circle of people, and then people start to filter through,” he said. “Like, ‘Now, I’m closer friends with so-and-so. Now, I’m better friends with this one because he also has money.’ I continue to surround myself with the same people. I keep my same circle. I’m always in contact with my family, even when I can’t see them.”
Having family around after his dizzying rise to fame was crucial for him to remain grounded.
“It’s like I was in a coma,” he said of his sudden success. “As if, suddenly, two years of my life went by in a week, because of this sudden boom.”
“I still work every day now, but during that time it was really weird,” he added. “It was as if they had taken an animal from the jungle to the zoo. I was in the zoo for two years doing the same thing I did in the jungle, only I wasn’t in the jungle.”
He’s a worldwide superstar today
Bad Bunny released his debut studio album X100pre in 2018. And despite the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020, Bad Bunny solidified his status as a superstar, appearing at the Super Bowl halftime show and releasing his sophomore album YHLQMDLG shortly thereafter, and releasing two more albums throughout the year.
His fourth album, 2022’s Un Verano Sin Ti, has broken records on the Billboard charts and earned him nominations at major award ceremonies.
