A 30-second Super Bowl ad costs around $7 million, about $233,000 per second. Brands spend big for just a moment of airtime. But the artist performing a full 12-minute halftime show? Bad Bunny, headlining Super Bowl 60 in Santa Clara, will be paid nothing. That’s right-zero dollars.

The King of Latin Trap is doing the biggest gig on Earth for free. The league announced Sunday that Bad Bunny will take the stage at Levi’s Stadium. The NFL doesn’t pay its halftime performers. Not a dime. Instead, it offers a platform so colossal it makes a world tour look like a coffee shop open mic.

For Bad Bunny, this was never about the money. “What I’m feeling goes beyond myself,” he told Rolling Stone, He said it’s for those “who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown.”

Look, nobody’s suggesting Bad Bunny is going home empty-handed. The NFL, along with sponsor Apple Music and producer Roc Nation, foots the entire production bill, a tab that easily climbs north of $10M for the stage, lights, dancers, and pyro. 

The Super Bowl halftime show is the single greatest commercial an artist could dream of. After Rihanna’s performance in 2023, her digital song sales spiked a reported 390%. It’s a global marketing blitz that rockets an artist’s entire catalog into the stratosphere.

Rihanna proved the power; Bad Bunny bets on it

“What Benito has done and continues to do for Puerto Rico is truly inspiring,” founder of Roc Nation and NFL’s live music entertainment strategist, Jay-Z said in a statement. “We are honored to have him on the world’s biggest stage.”

Still, the pressure is astronomical. BB is stepping onto a stage still sizzling from Kendrick Lamar’s performance last February. K-Dot’s show was a cultural phenomenon that shattered records, pulling in over 127 million viewers and earning him an Emmy.

That’s the bar now.

“Bad Bunny represents the global energy and cultural vibrancy that define today’s music scene,” said Jon Barker, an NFL senior VP, calling him a “natural choice” for the moment. The pick makes sense. With 4 No. 1 albums and a unique ability to bridge genres and languages, he is one of the few artists on Earth who can command that kind of audience.

He ended his statement with a message for his community: “Ve y dile a tu abuela, que seremos el HALFTIME SHOW DEL SUPER BOWL.” (Go and tell your grandmother, we’ll be at the Super Bowl Halftime Show).

So, how much is Bad Bunny charging for the biggest show of his life? Nothing. The cost is zero. But the prize for nailing it, for representing his culture on that stage and meeting a historic moment? That’s everything. He’s not there to get paid. He’s there to score that touchdown.