BARRIO (AS) – Bad Bunny has raised eyebrows by taking an apparent dig at Colombian singer J Balvin on his new album, “Nadie sabe lo que va a pasar mañana” (“Nobody knows what’s going to happen tomorrow”).

On the 22-track disc, which was released on Friday, the song “Thunder y Lightning” includes the lines: “You’ve seen me, I’m always with the same people / While you’re all friends with the whole world, just like Balvin.”

As the music writer Julyssa Lopez explains in Rolling Stone, the lyric has been widely interpreted as a reference to the fact that J Balvin “has been criticized for a commercial, people-pleasing approach both in his music and as an artist”.

The seeming jibe has come as a surprise, as Bad Bunny and J Balvin have been known to have a good relationship. The pair have collaborated on a number of tracks, and even recorded the album “Oasis” together in 2019.

J Balvin expresses surprise in Instagram reaction

In an Instagram Live video recorded soon after the release of “Nadie sabe lo que va a pasar mañana”, J Balvin said: “I think Bad is a really good artist, an excellent artist. The guy I know is a great guy. We did a great collaboration, we’ve grown together, we’ve supported each other.”

He added: “I don’t know what’s going through his mind, I really don’t. I do know that the guy I know is a good guy, though. So this really has taken me by surprise.”

Bad Bunny mentions Shakira’s “cash in” lyric

Bad Bunny’s new album also features references to other fellow artists.

In the song “Los Pits”, the 29-year-old seems to allude to “BZRP Music Sessions #53″, Colombian pop star Shakira’s wildly successful collaboration with Argentinian DJ and producer Bizarrap.

In an apparent adaptation of Shakira’s line “women no longer cry, they cash in”, the Puerto Rican sings: “Now men cry, they do – but they keep on cashing in.”

Makes reference to Karol G’s use of “bichota”

On the track “Vuelve Candy B”, meanwhile, Bad Bunny refers to “bichota” – a word which has become synonymous with the Colombian singer Karol G. She uses the term as a reference to a strong female figure, as part of her attempts to promote the empowerment of women through her music.

Karol G has repurposed the word from the Puerto Rican slang term “bichote” – “bichota” in its masculine form – which tends to refer to high-ranking drug traffickers.

“Hey, I’m from PR [Puerto Rico], where the real ‘bichotas’ come from,” Bad Bunny sings.