The album was released, the 5th. Of January, 2025. The album is very important to Latinos all over the world. This is the first album in HISTORY to win album of the year that was not an English written album. That is a huge impact. Bad Bunny took inspiration from many Latin cultures, a mix of reggaeton and dembow with lots of salsa. Bad Bunny really focused on his Puerto Rican heritage.
When I went to Puerto Rico in February of this year (2026), The album was being played continuously. I heard Baile Inovidable five times in a row when I was at La Placita. La Placita is a bar hangout area in San Juan. There was a beautiful mural of the DTMF album painted on a wall near one of the restaurant’s in La Placita.
Alberto Rivera, a Puerto Rican artist. His Instagram is @Urbanfire44 (Michael Rosa)
I grew up admiring reggaeton, bachata, and salsa. The culture of Latin American and Hispanics is all about food and living life. Here at Stevenson when I am at an event for the Organization of Latin American Students (OLAS). This is the only time when I am on campus that I feel truly apart of something. The culture matches, I feel at home.
The Puerto Ricans embrace food, alcohol, dancing, party, and good times with family. I watched it firsthand, beautiful moments spent in Puerto Rico.
Songs like NUEVAYoL, la MuDANZA and a personal favorite KETU teCRÉ, all embrace Hispanic culture. With the beat, the lyrics, the music videos, there is always a message. For example Bad Bunny uses a coqui in some music videos on the album.
Coqui’s are the native frog of Puerto Rico, they are also found in other islands, like Hawaii. The coqui is like a character of culture. His name is El Sapo Concho, he appaears in the KETU teCRÉ music video.
Visuals are very important for the album and the message Bad Bunny sends to others. His Super Bowl performance was filled with so many hidden messages, all to spread awareness for Puerto Rico. Truly an artist with a vision. I think that’s why a lot of Latinos respect Bad Bunny, he is using his voice for empowering Hispanics.
An interview with Bad Bunny and Zane Lowe took a DEEP DIVE into the Grammy winning album. Lowe is a DJ and producer from New Zealand. He invited Bad Bunny to his show. The premise of the show is inviting artists to listen to their new albums. While also asking questions behind the scenes of creating the songs/album.
“About my career I’m about to turn 10 years in the industry and that’s crazy cuz sometime I feel that I’m a rookie this is my first year this is my first album,” Bunny stated in the interview.
That hunger helped produce arguably, his most impactful album to date. Personally, I think Un verano sin ti was a better album but the political and cultural impact DTMF has left can’t go unnoticed.
Un Verano Sin Ti is number 76 in the Apple Music top 100 best albums of all time.
While talking about Un Verano Sin Ti in the podcast Bunny said, “It is one of the best things that I ever created, so I felt free creating that album more than the other ones, I think that I found myself”.
You can tell how much UVST influenced DTMF. The “mambo” as Bunny would call it, the mix between salsa, reggaeton, and dembow in one album. The tropical and mix of multiple genres is Bad Bunny’s “sound”.
“I don’t want to record any songs out from Puerto Rico,” Bunny told Lowe in the interview.
Although he made a couple songs in New York due to being a part of the film Happy Gilmore 2, most the album was finished and recorded in Puerto Rico.
Being at home in your culture with your family is what gave this album that relatable feel for all his fans. This album has songs you listen to at the club, in the car, with your headphones when you’re thinking about a special someone. That’s why I love DTMF.
I was at Playa Carolina, enjoying my final days in Puerto Rico. No matter the time, people are enjoying the water, the sun, and that is the beauty of Puerto Rico.
Bokete played from my small speaker. The emotions that song gave me, had me tearing up near the water, imaging so many things in that moment.
Thinking to myself, Im 19 years old, traveling without my parents, I am in Puerto Rico?! It was life changing . The song is so mellow. One of the only slower and melodic songs of the album. Very slept on song that needs more recognition.
“6 pm frente el rio” That’s the first sentence from the song. I related on so many levels just being in PR. Music allows you to use your imagination. With a song like Bokete, you imagine yourself in Puerto Rico near the water as the sun sets. Bad Bunny’s soft soothing voice plays and you let yourself get consumed by the lyrics. I did’t have to imagine that.
DTMF is an album that made history, an album that gave Puerto Ricans freedom. Gracias Bunny.
