NFL fans in agreement on Super Bowl national anthem singer after Bad Bunny backlash
Charlie Puth has been announced as the national anthem singer for Super Bowl LX with Brandi Carlile and Coco Jones also performing – and fans expressed their excitement online
02:55 ET, 01 Dec 2025
Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny will perform at the Super Bowl(Image: VALERIE MACON, AFP via Getty Images)
Super Bowl enthusiasts showed their enthusiasm on Sunday night after the pregame entertainment lineup for Super Bowl LX was officially announced.
After Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny received criticism when he was named as the halftime act for the 2026 NFL championship in September, Charlie Puth has now been confirmed as the performer who will deliver the national anthem on Sunday, February 8, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. Alongside 33-year-old Charlie, 11x Grammy-winning musician Brandi Carlile and Grammy-winning RandB rising star Coco Jones will also take the stage at the sporting spectacle, which features two NFL teams competing against each other.
Brandi, 44, will perform America the Beautiful, while Coco, 27, will sing Lift Every Voice and Sing. NFL supporters were thrilled with the news and headed to X, previously known as Twitter, to express their enthusiasm.
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“Charlie Puth at the Super Bowl? Y’all just unlocked a different level of hype,” one fan posted, reports the Mirror US. Someone else commented, “Wow, that’s amazing news – Charlie Puth performing the anthem!”
Another said, “CHARLIE PUTH SINGING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM AT THE SUPER BOWL!! As a huge fan of Charlie for over 10 years, this makes me soooo happy.”
Charlie Puth will deliver the national anthem(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The response stood in sharp contrast to some of the feedback received when Bad Bunny, whose birth name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, was revealed at the end of September. Conservative commentators and Make America Great Again supporters reacted strongly to the Puerto Rican artist’s selection as the 2026 Super Bowl halftime performer.
Many advocated for boycotts of the NFL championship game, with some even demanding Bad Bunny’s deportation, overlooking the fact that he is an American citizen. Bad Bunny addressed the backlash during his Saturday Night Live hosting appearance on October 4.
Brandi Carlile will also perform(Image: AP)
On the opening episode of season 51, the 31-year-old took the stage at Studio 8H, initially discussing his recent Puerto Rico residency before addressing the Super Bowl controversy. “I’m really excited to be doing the Super Bowl and I know that people around the world who all love my music are also happy,” he began, before transitioning to Spanish for approximately 20 seconds.
His Spanish remarks translated to “especially all the Latinos in the entire world and here in the United States- All the people who have worked to open doors. More than an accomplishment of mine, it’s an accomplishment for all of us demonstrating that our hard work in this country will never be taken away from us or erased.”
Coco Jones is among the stars taking to the stage(Image: Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Directing a message toward his detractors, he returned to English, declaring, “And if you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn!” The halftime show has become one of the sport’s biggest cultural touchpoints.
Past headline performances have produced career-defining moments, from Beyoncé’s politically charged set in 2016 to Shakira and Lopez’s bilingual showcase in 2020.
