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Watch Bad Bunny Bring ‘DeBí TiRAR MáS FOToS’ to Life in His Tiny Desk Concert

He delivered a nearly 35-minute set that included the title track, "Pitorro de Coco" and more.

Bad Bunny: Tiny Desk Concert

Bad Bunny: Tiny Desk Concert

Courtesy Photo

Three months after dropping his prideful and tropical-leaning set DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, Bad Bunny visited the NPR headquarters in Washington, D.C., for his Tiny Desk debut.

Surrounded by seven musicians — cuatros and congas in the mix — the Puerto Rican artist kicked off the nearly 35-minute set with his holiday-themed “Pitorro de Coco.” “I swear I didn’t know there were going to be so many people here … and even a few Puerto Ricans. The next song is so that — I don’t know how many people travel to Puerto Rico – I can take you there,” the artist said before performing a saucy plena version of his hard-hitting perreo “Voy A Llevarte Pa PR.”


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Sipping coffee, vibing with the musicians and connecting with the intimate crowd, the artist born Benito Martínez Ocasio performed a bolero-version of “Kloufrens” before joking about the school desk he was sitting on. “I don’t know whose idea it was to give me this desk. It was mine, and I’m starting to regret it,” he laughed.

He then performed the somber “Lo Que Le Paso A Hawaii,” telling the audience that he wrote this song after dreaming about it. “The song didn’t let me go back to sleep, so I wrote it completely and that’s when I fell asleep,” he shared. After the tune, he admitted to having rehearsed the song outside of the White House before the Tiny Desk concert.

“The next song is not a song, it’s not a movie, it’s true … I think my story comes from the same place that many of ours come from. We’re proud to bring our music and culture to the whole world,” he said before delivering the salsa-heavy “La Mudanza,” during which each of his musicians flaunted their vibrant solos.

After telling heartfelt and witty anecdotes, Bunny and his colleagues proudly chanted the song’s popular line “ yo soy de P f–king R!” before an impromptu and quick grand finale of the album’s title track, “DTMF.”

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The 17-track set, released on Día de Reyes (Three Kings Day) on Jan. 5, hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Currently, the album is in its 12th week at No. 1 on the Top Latin Albums chart. Meanwhile, the title track, “DTMF,” is No. 1 on Hot Latin Songs and Latin Streaming Songs; and “Baile Inolvidable” tops the Tropical Airplay chart.

Watch his full Tiny Desk concert below:

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

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Executive of the Week: Justin West of Secret City Records on the Secrets of Independent Music Success​
FYI

Executive of the Week: Justin West of Secret City Records on the Secrets of Independent Music Success​

The man behind one of Canada's most successful indie labels talks about the late-blooming success of French-language streaming record-holder Patrick Watson, why he builds long-term relationships with artists, and why it's important for the indie sector to work together.

Justin West is a leader and advocate in Canada’s independent music scene, but he didn’t plan it out that way. When he started his record label Secret City Records in Montreal in the mid-2000s, it was out of necessity. He had met an artist he loved and wanted to build a career with, and the label was a means to do it. That artist was Patrick Watson, and 20 years later he — and Secret City — are more successful than ever.

West — a multiple time Billboard Canada Power Player – leads one of the biggest indie labels in Canada while also advocating for the sector on multiple boards both locally and internationally. When we speak to him for this Executive of the Week interview, he’s just returned from Banff for the National Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Culture, and is a central figure in discussions around the Online Streaming Act and collective negotiations with online streaming platforms.

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