The Spanish saying is right when it points out that you can’t be in mass and ringing the bells at the same time. But you can go to mass and ring the bells afterwards. Or vice versa. The fact is that there’s usually time for everything. Or at least with that premise, quite a few young people have organized their weekend in Madrid, who will go to see Pope Leo XIV and, in addition, to ‘perrear’ (dance reggaeton) while Bad Bunny sings to them. Whatever the case, Madrid will be a party.
“I don’t think they’re incompatible,” says Marta, a 26-year-old from Madrid who lives between Lisbon and our capital. She was a bit disappointed with the special guest at her concert last Sunday: rapper Lunar La L. “I got Bad Bunny tickets a year ago and, taking advantage of coming to see him, I’ve stayed an extra week to see the Pope,” she explains.
“Both have had the ability to bring people together for the same purpose: the singer’s is to have a good time with friends enjoying something you like to do, and the Pope’s is to live faith in community, with other types of friends or family. Both have known how to move masses, each in their own way.”
Madrid expects a total of 1,800,000 people to gather at various points in the capital that will host events, masses, or meetings with Robert Prevost during the four days he will spend in the city. On the other hand, the bad bunny will attract around 640,000 fans during the 10 nights of his residency at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium.
Almost back-to-back
“Actually, I don’t listen to Bad Bunny that much, and the ticket came to me by chance. A friend had an extra one, and I joined the plan,” confesses Guillermo, 29. He sighs when he thinks about the “beating” that awaits him: “My plan is to go see the Pope on Saturday night,” he tells EL MUNDO on Friday, “and to mass in Cibeles on Sunday, which is a bit of a beating because they make us be there from seven in the morning.” Tonight he will find himself chanting debí tirar más fotos.
If there is a link between the Holy Father and the Puerto Rican, it is the exceptional nature of their visits. 15 years have passed since the last visit of a pope to Spain -Benedict XVI, in 2011-, and seven since Bad Bunny offered his last concert in 2019. Both events were expected to attract thousands of people. Some, even, moved by the desire to witness historical events or, directly, by what is called FOMO, from the English fear of missing out.
For Guillermo, it is “always positive” for people to sign up for activities related to faith, regardless of the reason. “It will make young people even more involved with this topic and unite them more,” he believes. To justify himself, he goes back to WYD 2023 in Lisbon: “The feeling of almost two million people being outdoors just because the Pope was coming was brutal.”
Complete plan
Trends, young people believe, are not necessarily a bad thing. Neither in music nor in faith. “Everyone gets curious,” says Gabriela, 18, a staunch fan of the number one reggaeton artist, and we’ll see if of Leo XIV: “Actually, I only know he’s American,” she laughs. She will attend all the weekend events accompanied by her family, who obtained the necessary QR codes to access the area set up for the faithful through her younger brother’s school.
“I believe that those who come to see the Pope do so because they truly want to see him and believe in him. Deep down, something moves you, faith, and it’s always exciting,” she points out. If there’s one thing that particularly excites her, it’s the vigil: “My cousin sings with Hakuna, I think it’s super amazing that they’re going to do it today. I remember when they used to sing at home with the whole family, and now seeing her sing in front of the Pope is amazing,” she adds.
Gabriela, on the other hand, will be watched singing by her boyfriend, Luis, who gave her the concert tickets when they had been together for a month. “I ran out of tickets, and he knew I was really excited. When he told me, I went crazy with joy.” She is anxious to know who the special guest at her concert will be: “They say it could be Enrique Iglesias. I’d die, I’d love it,” she notes before adding that she is trying to get the guy to sign up for religious activities. “I think he’ll end up coming to some, Luis does what I tell him,” she jokes.
The desire to enjoy oneself surrounded by friends is what moves thousands of people these days between these two poles of attraction. “They are two different concepts of having a good time,” notes Ernesto. At 25, he is clear that Bad Bunny represents “uncontrol” and “the most modern sense” of the expression, while, in the case of Leo XIV, “it takes on a greater depth, and has more to do with feeling life.”
Fan of Leo
“I like that the Pope addresses today’s problems: he issued the encyclical on AI, and I find it quite unassailable. I also think his collaboration on all abuse cases is excellent. In general, Leo XIV has managed to consolidate all the ground that, in my opinion, Francis prepared, but with a more traditional point of view,” he assesses.
Reviewing the challenges and movements of the Church in this century, he recalls WYD 2011: “Eight or 10 Cubans came to my house; we offered it to them so they could see Benedict. They told us how bad a time they had, and they were wonderful people. The strongest thing was how happy they were to be able to see him. I want to see Leo XIV a bit to reconnect. I’ve had ups and downs with my faith, and this seems phenomenal to me to see with my own eyes all the power this movement and this new wave of parishioners have.”
And what about the new wave of Benito fans? “I said yes to the concert because it’s an experience. His lyrics, honestly, seem grotesque to me. But artistically, it’s danceable, singable, and catchy music. I’ve seen a lot of videos on social media, and I hope to have a good time this weekend, in the most modern sense, although it’s going to be tough,” he predicts. By the close of this edition, he will be absorbing every drop of Puerto Rican ‘bellaqueo’ while thinking about getting up early to go to mass today. May all evils be just those.
