Rosalía says her comments on being the “opposite” of Bad Bunny were taken “out of context”: “It saddens me”

Rosalía has spoken out after saying she is the “opposite” of Bad Bunny, claiming that her comments had been taken “out of context”.

The Spanish singer-songwriter is set to release her new album ‘Lux’ this Friday (November 7) via Columbia, following on from 2022’s ‘Motomami’. She sings in 13 different languages on the record, as confirmed in a recent interview with the New York Times.

• Read More: Rosalía – ‘Motomami’ review: an electrifying serve from a left-field mastermind

During an accompanying conversation for the NYT‘s Popcast, Rosalía was asked about Puerto Rican rapper and singer Bad Bunny’s decision to perform only in Spanish, despite him having many fans who don’t understand the language.

“I think I’m the opposite of Benito,” the pop star responded. “I think I care. I care so much that definitely I’m going to make the effort to sing in a language that’s not my language. It’s not my comfort zone.”

She continued: “There’s 13 languages [on ‘Lux’]. I hope there’s a little something [for everyone], or hopefully there’s translation.”

The comparison to Bad Bunny (real name Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) subsequently went viral on social media. Many fans have defended him, claiming that his decision to sing only in Spanish was a cultural and political stance.

Now, Rosalía has directly responded to a TikTok user who had called out her remarks. “The reason why [Bad Bunny] decides to only sing music in Spanish is because he’s standing up for his culture. Something you cannot relate to because, what? You are not a Latina, you’re Spaniard,” said @rina_see_me (watch below).

The TikToker also accused the singer of benefiting from Latino culture without understanding its roots. “So you should be able to stand up for it, but it does not surprise me that you’re just like, … ‘Not my circus, not my monkeys’,” she concluded.

Rosalia, Bad Bunny es de Puerto Rico, su decisión de no cantar en inglés es política, reivindicativa, anti colonial, tú eres blanca y europea. pic.twitter.com/lztaXsI9Mf

— La Bruja Medusa (@labruja_medusa) November 2, 2025

@rina_see_me

Girl bye

♬ original sound – rina_see_me

Writing in the comments section of the video, Rosalía said (translated from Spanish): “Hey, I understand your point of view but I think it’s being taken out of context.

“I have nothing but love and respect for Benito, he’s a great colleague that I admire whom I’ve been lucky to collaborate with [on 2021 single ‘La Noche de Anoche’]. I’ve always been grateful to Latin America because, despite coming from another place, the Latin people have always supported me throughout my career and I empathise with what you’re explaining.”

She added: “Precisely for that reason, it saddens me that this is being misinterpreted because that wasn’t the intention.”

‘Lux’ will see Rosalía sing in her native Spanish, as well as Catalan, English, Latin, Sicilian, Ukrainian, Arabic, German and more.

Speaking about her multi-lingual approach to the album, she told the New York Times: “It’s a lot of trying to understand how other languages work… it’s a lot of intuition and trying to be like, ‘I’m going to just write and let’s see how these will sound in another language’.”

Rosalía told the publication she had spent a lot of time on Google Translate, as well as speaking with professional translators. She also worked with teachers who coached her phonetically on how to pronounce words and phrases.

Opening up about her desire to understand new cultures through her language learning on the LP, she explained: “I love travelling, I love learning from other humans. Why would I not try to learn another language and try to sing in another language and expand the way I can be a singer or a musician or an artist? The world is so connected.”

Rosalía teamed up with Björk and Yves Tumor for the ‘Lux’ lead single ‘Berghain’. She had previously worked with Björk on the 2023 duet ‘Oral’.

Last month, Bad Bunny hit out at the conservative backlash concerning his upcoming Spanish-only set for the 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show in February.

While hosting Saturday Night Live, he joked that “everyone is happy” about the huge performance, “even Fox News”. He later continued his monologue in Spanish, before wrapping up by saying: “And if you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn.”

The NFL has since defended the decision for Bad Bunny to take on the Halftime Show, while over half of Republicans disapprove of the booking.

The post Rosalía says her comments on being the “opposite” of Bad Bunny were taken “out of context”: “It saddens me” appeared first on NME.