Los Pleneros De La Cresta Talk Lady Gaga, Plena

This past Sunday, Los Pleneros de la Cresta found themselves on the biggest stage of their career: They joined Bad Bunny for the Super Bowl halftime show. Not only did they perform the Debi Tirar Mas Fotos title track “DtMF”and their Bad Bunny plena collaboration “CAFé CON RON” in front of millions of spectators (128.2 million to be exact), they also backed surprise guest Lady Gaga during a salsa rendition of “Die with a Smile.” 

For a couple of young guys from the small Puerto Rican town of Ciales, it was a day that they never imagined would be possible. “It was one of those moments we’re still processing,” says Joshuan Ocasio Rivera, founding member of the group. “Being chosen to sing backing vocals — which, in our case, we were doing for the first time in English — on one of her songs, and at the same time witnessing Lady Gaga singing salsa, was truly iconic for us.”

On DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, Bad Bunny honored native Puerto Rican genres that haven’t been celebrated much outside of the archipelago. One of those is plena, a folkloric sound that emerged in the early 1900s in the southern town of Ponce, initially as a way for marginalized communities to share news and events between each other, led by instruments like panderetas and güiros. Since then it has stayed alive during the holiday season, when lively partygoers go caroling home-to-home or at festivals, performing a mix of classic and spontaneous improvised jingles over plena rhythms.

Los Pleneros de la Crest had been one of those bands, keeping the genre alive through sheer enthusiasm and passion. The quartet is composed of twins Joshuan and Joseph Ocasio Rivera, their brother Jeyluix, and close friend Josué Román Figueroa. They have been active since 2013 when the group was founded at the Río Piedras campus of the University of Puerto Rico. They’ve toiled for the past decade-and-change, releasing three albums (their last one in 2024, just months before DtMF) and doing shows around Puerto Rico. In November of 2024, they were one of the artists who performed at Puerto Rico Independence Party candidate Juan Dalmau’s campaign closing event, where Bad Bunny made a surprise appearance to endorse the candidate. A giant boom for plena was around the corner, but most didn’t know it yet. 

When Bad Bunny decided he wanted to bring plena to the forefront, he tapped them. Together they cooked up one of the album’s most popular breakout hits, “CAFé CON RON.” The track is an ode to the country’s centrally located mountain towns, celebrating them just as warmly and eagerly as Puerto Rico’s beaches and coasts tend to be. 

“We were speechless. It was one of those moments that tightens your chest and brings tears to your eyes. Then came gratitude, and also a profound sense of responsibility,” says Joshuan. “Humbly, we understand that it wasn’t just a personal achievement: it was plena music reaching a space it truly deserves.”

This wasn’t the first time plena has hit the mainstream. Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl guest Ricky Martin featured the sound in his 2006 hit “Pégate,” but “CAFé CON RON” thrust it into the spotlight and quickly catapulted up the streaming charts. The track sticks to plena’s traditional sound, with no compromises in tone. The approach worked, and suddenly the Pleneros were also the center of attention.They were onstage every date of Benito’s San Juan residency, where he would cede a block of the set list to them while he did a wardrobe change. 

To Los Pleneros, plena isn’t a fad or trend, but “a living flag, honoring those who brought it to life in their neighborhoods, through challenges.” They want to elevate plena to the same level as salsa, bachata, merengue, and other popular genres that started out as niche. “I believe we’re now at a great moment for independent projects dedicated to Puerto Rican culture to establish themselves, record songs, release albums, and plan for future concerts,” says Joshuan. “[Making] dynamic activities so as to create value in the industry and allow it to continue growing and expanding.”

Theb Super Bowl was the culmination of their mission as artists. As they tell it, keeping plena alive is tantamount to keeping Puerto Rican identity alive. Plena, with its roots and ties to both jíbaro and afro-latine culture is a genre that perseveres, and they’re eager to play a significant role in continuing to keep it relevant.”We thought of our communities, of those who shaped us, of every plena musician who has sustained this tradition for generations. We didn’t feel like we were alone; we were carrying history, identity, and a piece of Puerto Rico with us,” says Joshuan.

“We want to be facilitators so that plena continues to expand into more and more spaces. To make it accessible so that the rest of the world can embrace it,” adds Jeyluix. “Plena was born in our communities and today it seeks to unite with other communities around the world.”