The artists’ competing Super Bowl halftime shows feel like a musical rematch of the 2024 presidential election.
At left, Bad Bunny accepts the award for album of the year for “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” during the 68th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 1, 2026, in Los Angeles. At right, Kid Rock visits the Oval Office in Washington, D.C., on March 31, 2025. (Chris Pizzello/AP and Pool/AP)
Two polarizing performers — one Puerto Rican, the other a Michigander — are competing head-to-head during Super Bowl Sunday for the eyes, ears and hearts of Americans.
The halftime show is the most viewed televised concert in the U.S., and Turning Point USA’s “The All-American Halftime Show” headliner Robert James Ritchie aka Kid Rock hopes to make a dent in the ratings of the official performance featuring Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio aka Bad Bunny.
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I’ve written about both artists in the past
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Here’s the performer that I plan to watch on Sunday
Super Bowl LX Halftime Show performer Bad Bunny laughs during a news conference, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in San Francisco ahead of the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. (Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP)
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David Plazas joined the AJC as opinion editor in 2025. His goal is to create the ultimate platform for conversations, debates and idea exchanges in the South. He spent 25 years at the USA TODAY Company working his way from reporter at The News-Press in Fort Myers, Florida, to statewide opinion and engagement editor at The Tennessean in Nashville.
