by Charlie Gutierrez
Bad Bunny and reggaeton fans as a whole have been craving a new album from the singer-rapper after his 2023 release of "nadie sabe lo que va a pasar mañana."
The phrase "debí tirar más fotos" means in Spanish, "I should have taken more photos" and draws to the themes of the album. The NEW album has references to the current political reality and issues of Puerto Rico, where the title explores the passage of time, and the importance of preserving memories, and calls upon the need to appreciate Puerto Rican culture.
The album starts with the single "NUEVAYoL", an upbeat song that pays homage to
"Un Verano en Nueva York" by El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico and Andy Montañez. Bad Bunny transforms the song by giving the salsa an urban twist and tying in lyrics of Puerto Rican and Dominican references (Genius).
The album was influenced a lot by the traditional sounds of Puerto Rico, like plena, jíbaro and salsa but also more modern genres like house and reggaeton.
Columbus band teacher and music producer chimed in on the new album.
"I really like them [traditional music styles], especially because a lot of his stuff has just...been like reggaeton beats and they're cool and trap beats and things like that, but I really enjoyed how there was a lot of like samples of traditional Latin music," he said. "Like the hits from back in the day and they used the real sound, obviously they incorporated with like, you know, dembow kind of drums...I've really appreciated even like the first track, you know, and the second track you could hear like samples from old songs that was cool and I feel like they [Bad Bunny's producers] haven't really done too much of that before."
The album is further supported by the other singles: "EL CLúB", "PIToRRO DE COCO", "BAILE INoLVIDABLE", and the title track "DtMF".
"DtMF" is the second-to-last song on the album and is one of the most (if not, most) emotional tracks on the album, as the lyrics "Debí tirar más fotos de cuando te tuve / Debí darte más besos y abrazo' las veces que pude / Ojalá que los mío' nunca se muden" (DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS) have this bittersweet feeling, as Bad Bunny reminisces on when he was with someone and how he could have made more memories and enjoyed the time with them longer.
The incorporation of traditional Latin and Caribbean styles was a great choice by Bad Bunny's producers, as it created new music that was fresh yet still authentic.
"...the use of those new samples or really old samples and incorporating them and making the beat modern yet using the old samples, it was like very seamless, and the people used to do that with like hip hop and stuff, and they would take old jazz samples and put some rap beats and stuff...It was very smooth, it was like very well done. The production was outstanding." said Cooper.
I also spoke with some of the people in Music Production to see what they had to say about the album.
"So honestly, as a Puerto Rican myself, I really enjoyed the album DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS by Bad Bunny, because for me it represents a sort of nostalgic feeling. The meaning of the album DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, it stands for I should've taken more pictures and it represents a similar message throughout the entire album that I miss something or I miss someone and I wish I took advantage and I was grateful for what I had.", said Alejandro Laboy '26. "There's a lot of Puerto Rican slang that's used in the album, and I think Bad Bunny does that so his fans, his Puerto Rican fans, can recognize that he's grateful for them, and that's what he should’ve taken more pictures of. He is obsessed with his island...It's a message and it's a reminder to be grateful for what we have."
"The album was very good, even as someone who's not from Puerto Rico, I still feel connected to it because in Venezuela a lot of similar things are happening and like I really resonated with that.", said Andres Morales '26.
This sentiment of the album's emotional themes seems to echo across people from different countries and backgrounds.
"I feel like the fact that it has the same message throughout most of the album is powerful because it applies to a lot of people and you don't have to be Spanish, you don't have to speak Spanish to understand it, that's the beauty of it.", Laboy added.
"DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS" was a project that I think we all needed at this time. Its complex sound combining contemporary Latin rap with traditional sounds from genres like salsa works so well. The album's message is also unique, as it gives a bit more of a narrative or meaning to the music, something that, up until the album's release, Bad Bunny had not explored yet.
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