Get the latest gossip

Billboard’s Greatest Pop Stars of the 21st Century: No. 23 — Bad Bunny

Bad Bunny is our No. 23 greatest pop star of the 21st century for the way he's transformed the global shape of pop stardom.

Bad Bunny first made his presence known in 2016, after his single “Diles” – released on SoundCloud, while Ocasio was still working as a supermarket bagger – attracted enough viral attention to both get him a label deal with Hear This Music and Rimas Entertainment and earn a remix featuring established reggaetón hitmakers Farruko, Arcángel and Ñengo Flow (and a fellow rising star in Ozuna). Over the next year, Bad Bunny would also become a fixture on the Hot 100, appearing on hits alongside Becky G (“Mayores”) and Enrique Iglesias (“El Bano”), while also contributing his growing star power to All-Star cuts like “Krippy Kush” and “Te Boté,” the latter his first top 40 entry on the chart. Between 2022 and 2023, his stateside visibility took yet another step up, as he co-starred (and had a big fight scene) with Brad Pitt in the action flick Bullet Train, pulled double duty hosting and performing on Saturday Night Live, and dominated the 2022 VMAs remotely from his headlining gig at Yankee Stadium – part of his globetrotting World’s Hottest Tour – where he won the artist of the year moonperson.

Get the Android app