Who inspired Bad Bunny? A look at the Rapper’s journey to fame

Bad Bunny has been ruling over the Latin music industry with fresh and catchy music, but little do fans know about the beginning of his journey. Born in Puerto Rico, he mostly spent his early days at home and was greatly inspired by Daddy Yankee, Héctor Lavoe, and Vico C. He used to listen to them on the radio.

Moved by their music, Bunny began to sing occasionally at school and weekly in the church choir. After leaving the choir by the age of 13, Bunny was engaged in small jobs such as cleaning computers and bagging groceries at a local supermarket.

The young Bunny continued to earn while brainstorming ideas and writing new songs almost daily. He finally published his first song, Get, on SoundCloud after a lot of nudging from his friend and DJ, Ormani Pérez, in 2013.

Bunny was mostly inspired by Daddy Yankee and Héctor Lavoe who he listened to on the radio (Image via Jamie McCarthy / Getty Images)

The rapper followed the 2013 single with Tentación in 2014, and Just Let Me Know in 2015. Bad Bunny's music clicked with people in no time and he began drawing in hundreds and thousands of listeners every day.

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A look at Bad Bunny's rise to fame

Bad Bunny had his official breakthrough in 2018, as he released the debut album X100PRE. The album featuring Drake, Diplo, and El Alfa went to peak at the 11th position on the US Billboard 200 and secured the top rank in both the US Top Latin Albums and US Latin Rhythm Albums charts.

The rapper didn't hold back the following year either as he secured his first collaborative debut with J Balvin's Oasis. The 2019 album was a major hit and peaked at the ninth position on the Billboard 200 chart.

Bad Bunny released his second studio album, YHLQMDLG, on February 29, 2020. The album seemed to be an ode to his early music inspiration and featured major artists like Daddy Yankee, Nesi, Yaviah, and Ñengo Flow, among others. It secured over 1,444,000 album equivalent units and became the best-selling Latin Album of 2020.

The rapper's third studio album, El Último Tour Del Mundo, came out on November 27, 2020. Fusing the genres of Latin trap and rock music styles, the album peaked at the number one position on the US Billboard 200 chart. It secured three more US top ranks in the Independent Albums, Latin Rhythm Albums, and Top Latin Albums charts.

Bad Bunny released his debut album, X100PRE, in 2018 (Image via David Becker / Getty Images)

Bad Bunny followed up the chart-topper with the fourth studio album, Un Verano Sin Ti. It was released on May 6, 2022, and featured artists like Jhayco, Chencho Corleone, and, Rauw Alejandro, among others. The album won the rapper a Grammy (2023) in the Best Música Urbana Album category.

The rapper's latest album, Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana came out on October 13, 2023. The album secured over 184,000 equivalent album units in the United States and had most of its tracks dominating the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The Latin rapper has released over 91 singles to date. He has been honored with numerous accolades, including - four Latin Grammys, two Grammy Awards, eight Billboard Music Awards, and more.

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As of this writing, Bad Bunny is not confirmed to be working on a new project. The Latin artist has yet to announce a follow-up album for Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana.