Note: Explicit Lyrics
Song Title: El Apagón
Artist: Bad Bunny
Contributor: Maria Vicuña
El Apagón is a song by the artist Bad Bunny. This song touches upon the displacement of native Puerto Ricans on the island due to the arrival of US colonists and other socioeconomic issues such as blackouts (title of the song).
Use this song with older students like 11th/12th graders to spark discussion on gentrification and other issues going on in their communities that they might want to bring up. First, talk about the problems the people of Puerto Rico are currently struggling with and ask students to analyze Bad Bunny’s lyrics and discuss how he is describing them. Then, connect this song to the theme of gentrification and open the floor to students for discussion. How do they see gentrification happening? Have them observe their own communities. Have them do research on gentrification going on in cities throughout the US.
Tenants from Stovall’s “We can relate: Hip-hop culture, critical pedagogy, and the secondary classroom” are implemented in this lesson:
- (c): Students’ real-life experiences are legitimized as they become part of the official curriculum
- (e): Teachers and students engage in a collective struggle against the status quo (Stoval, 2006).
This lesson would tie into these two tenants because, for tenant (c), teachers would be having a conversation with students and their experience with gentrification. Gentrification has the potential to cause displacement of long-time residents and businesses, like what the people of Puerto Rico are going through. Even if students have not experienced this firsthand, it is important to talk about gentrification, especially to inner-city students who live in cities that have most likely gone through the process (ex. Hartford). It would also tie into tenant (e) because students and the teacher would be talking about current struggles that not just them, but people living in their communities are going through.
This lesson/song can be used to implement elements of critical pedagogy as well. Jones Stanbrough in Book Review Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework For Culturally And Historically Responsive Literacy, talks about the equity framework which includes four learning goals. This song/lesson touches on Intellectual Development: Gaining knowledge and becoming smarter and Criticality: Learning and developing the ability to read texts (including print and social contexts) to understand power, equity, and anti-oppression (Jones Stanbrough, 2022). Students will not only learn about social and socioeconomic inequities happening in Puerto Rico but also, see how Bad Bunny touches on the idea in his music bringing awareness to those who listen to his music but might not know what is going on in Puerto Rico.
El Apagón
Bad Bunny
English Translation Lyrics
[Intro]
With so much love for y’all
Mera, tell me
Hey
[Chorus]
Puerto Rico’s fucking great, hey, it’s fucking great
[Verse 1]
From Carolina came reggaeton and the sons’ of bitches from Bayamón (You know)
Hey, hey, they want to ride the wave and they haven’t gone to Rincón
A little kiss for grandma on the balcony
Catching all the holes, on the Rubicon
P fuckin’ R, hey
Land of Maelo and Tego Calderon
And of Barea who was champion (Wuh) before LeBron, mmm
Damn, another blackout
Let’s go to the bleachers to light up a blunt
Beforе Pipo gets a slap in the face
[Chorus]
Puеrto Rico’s fucking great, hey, Puerto Rico’s fucking great, hey, fucking great
Puerto Rico’s fucking great, ha, ha, hey, hey, hey
[Verse 2]
Ditch Maldivas, I’m staying in Palomino, hey
If not then I’m going to DR, greetings to my neighbors (My people, what’s up?), hey
Here the heat is different, the sun is taíno, hey
The capital of perreo, now everyone wants to be Latino, no, hey (No, no)
But they lack rhythm, drums and reggaetón, hey, hey, hey
Careful with my friends, we’re a bunch, hey, hey, hey
They lack rhythm, drums and reggaetón, hey, hey, hey
Careful with my friends, we’re a bunch (Careful)
Welcome to the heat
[Interlude]
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like the pussy of Puerto Rico
I like it, I like it, I like it
[Chorus]
Puerto Rico’s fucking great, Puerto Rico’s fucking great, Puerto Rico’s fucking great, Puerto Rico’s fucking great
Puerto Rico fucking great, is fucking great
Puerto Rico is fucking great, it’s fucking great
Puerto Rico is fucking great, Puerto Rico is fucking great, Puerto Rico is fucking great
[Outro]
I think the public knows that this is sort of an informal thing
I don’t want to leave here
I don’t want to leave here
Let them go, let them go
Let them go, let them go, let them go
What belongs to me, they’ll keep it to themselves
Let them go
This is my beach, this is my sun
This is my land, this is me
This is my beach, this is my sun
This is my land, this is me
Sources:
Jones Stanbrough, R. (2022). Book Review Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework For Culturally And Historically Responsive Literacy. Michigan Reading Journal, 54(2), 16.
Stovall, D. (2006). We can relate: Hip-hop culture, critical pedagogy, and the secondary classroom. Urban Education, 41(6), 585-602.