Brett Favre slams NFL for giving Bad Bunny Super Bowl halftime show: 'Pick someone who loves our country'

Bad Bunny has around 100 million more album sales than country music superstar Jason Aldean, who also trails the Puerto Rican musician in streams, social media followers and 2025 ticket sales by sizable margins.

Brett Favre doesn't care.

The Green Bay Packers legend is now the latest conservative to blast the decision to have Bad Bunny headline February's Super Bowl halftime show in Santa Clara. And like others on the right, Favre accused the global platinum artist of failing to love his native country.

'I'd pick someone who — maybe Jason Aldean, or, you know, someone who loves this country and that everyone could relate to,' Favre said on his podcast, 4th & Favre. 'I think Jason Aldean right now is as big a patriot and has a great voice.'

Favre did not explain why he thinks Bad Bunny doesn't love America, but other conservatives have slammed the performer's criticism of U.S. immigration policy, his support for Puerto Rican independence, and his needling of President Donald Trump.

For instance, in the music video for 'NUEVAYoL,' Bad Bunny used a Trump-like voice to apologize to immigrants and acknowledge the country's dependence on foreign workers.

Some, like Benny Johnson and Tomi Lahren, have claimed Bad Bunny's Spanish lyrics are somehow un-American.

Favre offered a few other country acts as well, including 73-year-old George Strait, before recalling Whitney Houston's memorable rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner before Super Bowl XXV in January of 1991.

'I remember when Whitney Houston sang the national anthem and I was blown away,' said Favre, who was preparing for the NFL Draft at the time. 'If you didn't have tears in your eyes watching and listening to that, something's wrong with you. I envision a national anthem and a halftime show, they're two different things but, it really grabs you.'

Neither Roc Nation, which produces the halftime show, nor the NFL have offered any apologies for choosing one of the world's most popular musicians. Roc Nation founder Jay-Z dismissed the controversy to TMZ, saying 'don't let them fool you,' while NFL commissioner Roger Goodell offered an impassioned defense of the pick at last month's league meeting in Manhattan.

'He's one of the leading and most popular in the world. That's what we try to achieve,' he said.

'It's an important stage for us, an important element to the entertainment value. It's carefully thought through. I think it's going to be an exciting and a united moment.'

'I'm not sure we've ever selected an artist where we didn't have some blowback or criticism. It's pretty hard to do when you literally have millions of people who are watching.

'But we're confident it's going to be a great show. He understands the platform that he's on. The show will evolve from here. I'm not saying there won't be additional talent but that's always the way it works.'

House Speaker Mike Johnson, for one, called for Grammy Award-winning country singer Lee Greenwood to perform his 1984 hit, 'God Bless The USA,' while other conservatives have named trait as a good choice for Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara.

Some critics went so far as to launch a petition demanding Strait replace Bad Bunny, whom they criticized for his gender-bending on-stage antics.

'The Super Bowl halftime show should unite our country, honor American culture, and remain family-friendly, not be turned into a political stunt,' read the petition.

'Bad Bunny represents none of these values; his drag performances and style are the opposite of what families expect on football's biggest stage.

'Again, George Strait embodies unity, tradition, and the timeless American music that truly deserves the 2026 Super Bowl spotlight.'

The petition names the NFL, Goodell and Roc Nation as the key 'decision makers' on the halftime show.

Roc Nation, the brand famously launched by rapper Jay-Z, has produced the Super Bowl halftime show since the 2019 season and is primarily responsible for choosing the performers.

In fact, Roc Nation added Bad Bunny to the Super Bowl lineup in February of 2022 behind headliners Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, although that decision garnered much less criticism at the time.

Bad Bunny is considered one of the most popular artists in the world with over 77 million monthly listeners on Spotify. In fact, he was that website's most-streamed artist in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

For comparison, Straight has over 8.2 million monthly listeners on Spotify, although he has sold 120 million records worldwide since the mid-1970s – slightly more than the 111 million in sales Bad Bunny is credited with since 2013.