Following his historic residency in Puerto Rico, Bad Bunny finally kicked off the highly anticipated DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS Tour in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, at the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez on Nov. 21. The first of two sold-out shows, expectations were high as the entire world got to be Squidward in the meme where he’s watching Sponge Bob and Patrick Star have fun from a window throughout his 30 shows at el Choli this summer. But now it’s our turn—the unfortunate ones who didn’t get to witness the “No Me Quiero Ir De Aquí” experience in person. But our luck would change, and the wait would be compensated as Benito delivered more than a show, but a celebration of shared cultures.
For the DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS Tour, Bad Bunny is taking Chuwi on the road with him, who featured on his song “WELTiTA.” They would later join him to perform it. Unlike the residency, Chuwi got to open the night, playing a 20-minute set that included powerful performances of songs like “Guerra” and “Tikiri.”
After a short intermission, the main attraction finally started. A key point of the DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS Tour is how Bad Bunny is bringing Puerto Rico to the rest of the world while also localizing the experience in each city. The opening visualizer featured two boys reciting the opening lines of “LA MuDANZA,” summoning Benito to emerge with his full band—including Los Sobrinos and Los Pleneros de la Cresta—and take over performing the song. Just as the boys had discussed, the show’s opening set was an ode to the “No Me Quiero Ir De Aquí” residency, which included other songs off the latest album like “BAILE INoLVIDABLE” and “NUEVAYoL,” and also the salsa version of “Callaíta.”
Other visualizers, which served as segues into the show’s three distinct sets, also highlighted the Dominican Republic. The Oscar-nominated actor Jacobo Morales reminisced about his favorite memories of Santo Domingo, and a stop-motion Concho talked about trying local staples, even shouting out La Casa de Alofoke. This begs the question of whether every country will get its own specialized interlude tailored to it.
The show’s second stage was set in La Casita, located at the back of the stadium. A feature that caused excitement at the Puerto Rico shows for the different guests and featured artists it would host, some fans in countries in Latin America were upset about its late addition. At ticket sale, the original seating plan featured a runway in the main stage and no casita. But days before the tour’s launch, the runway became new seating sections, and a bleachers section behind the main stage and La Casita at the back of the stadium were added. Given that the entire second set takes place in the latter, people who bought the tickets at the front were upset they’d see a third of the show through a big screen. Is Bad Bunny democratizing his concert experiences? While we’d have to ask him that, it’s not so different from the different viewing experiences at his PR residency. After all, La Casita represents the average middle-class home in Puerto Rico and not a mansion in Casa de Campo…
Just like in his home country, La Casita featured many stars on opening night, including Dominican-American actress Dascha Polanco and MLB star Juan Soto, who were invited by Hennessy, the world tour’s global presenting partner. This act is meant to represent a party with friends, so of course Bad Bunny would go down some of his biggest hits here, like “La Romana,” “Bichiyal,” and “Yo Perreo Sola.” Sadly, night one didn’t get any performing special guests, but it only reminded the audience that Benito can hold it all on his own.
But then, everything went dark, and an alarm sounded with a warning: We were about to experience the performance of a song unique to night one in Santo Domingo. El Conejo wouldn’t be performing it again at other shows. After a countdown, the track was “25/8,” a deep cut from 2020’s YHLQMDLG. The crowd went wild. Just like every residency show offered a unique experience for the audience, the tour will provide something similar with these one-off performances.
Also unique to the DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS Tour is the HENNESSY CLúB, an elevated pre-show interactive experience for concert-goers featuring signature drinks. Inspired by the Puerto Rican icon, both the club and the VIP viewing deck at the show served Hennessy Pasión and Hennessy de Coco drinks, highlighting Caribbean flavors. Both drinks will be available at every stop in the tour. Caribbean culture was also celebrated in the activations by including DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS imagery like the plastic chairs and Concho, as well as domino tables. In addition to Polanco and Soto, other celebrity sightings included Puerto Rican supermodel Joan Smalls and Dominican MLB All-Star Starling Marte.
The show closes high on emotions: first a heartfelt performance of “DtMF,” with pictures of attendees taken before the concert shown on the big screen, followed by an energetic, la-última-y-nos-vamos rendition of “EoO.” The night ends with a fireworks show representative of the dopamine rush everyone in attendance was experiencing within.
The DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS Tour continues on Dec. 5 and 6 in San Jose, Costa Rica, and is then followed by eight shows in Mexico City before pausing for his Super Bowl halftime show in 2026.
So, Was It Worth It?
Before this, I had only seen Bad Bunny perform in the U.S. I grew accustomed to a tough on-stage persona, one that commands la tarima with his hard raps and rarely breaking character. It had never occurred to me that I hadn’t seen him visibly happy and having fun before at a show. Maybe it was due to the world tour’s launch, or maybe because, as he’s said on countless occasions, he feels at home in the Dominican Republic. But whatever the reason is, Benito is having the time of his life singing his salsa hits with a full ensemble and jumping all over La Casita.
That happiness was contagious. Everyone in the audience was having the time of their lives, finally getting to see the songs off DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS for the first time, plus the now classic bangers and the special song for the island. Benito created a space where, at least for a couple of hours, we’re all at a fiesta de marquesina, enjoying with loved ones, dancing to our favorite tunes, no matter where you sat—or stood—in the stadium.
That’s what world-class artists do; it’s not just a concert, it’s an event. It’s a congregation. It’s a celebration of being Caribbean, and by extension, Latin American. So, yes, it is worth witnessing it—even if we have to travel for it. It’s a second chance to experience DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS after the residency, which is how the album is supposed to be experienced. But the world tour shows are worthy on their own, with every show having the chance to be exclusive too.
Travel and accommodations were provided to the author by Hennessy for the purpose of writing this story.
