Carliz de la Cruz becomes a millionaire after Bad Bunny lawsuit

Bad Bunny will have to pay $40 million to his ex-girlfriend for using "Bad Bunny baby" phrase without her consent.

Bad Bunny, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, was entangled in a legal disagreement with his former partner Carliz de la Cruz, with whom he was in a relationship from 2011 to 2016.

Initially disclosed by Puerto Rico news outlet NotiCel, Carliz de la Cruz initiated legal action against Bad Bunny in March 2023, alleging that he utilized a recording of her voice uttering the phrase "Bad Bunny baby" without her consent in various songs, live performances, television advertisements, and social media snippets.

Initially, his team proposed a $2,000 compensation to her, which she declined.

El Diario NY reported that Bad Bunny ultimately lost the legal battle and is now required to pay $40 million in damages to de la Cruz.

According to MSN, the lawsuit stated, “Since De La Cruz made it clear that she did not consent to its use, its publication constituted an act of gross negligence, bad faith […] since all parties had and still have knowledge of these facts and even so decided to be reckless and break the law.”

As per The Guardian, Bad Bunny and de la Cruz initially started their relationship in 2011, having met at the University of Puerto Rico in Arecibo.

They both held jobs at the Enoco chain supermarket. During this period, de la Cruz managed Bad Bunny's event scheduling, as well as handling his invoices and contracts, while he focused on his music career.

In 2015, he requested de la Cruz to record herself saying the phrase "Bad Bunny baby," which she devised and recorded multiple times on her phone.

The following year, he proposed to her, but then he signed with Rimas Music, and she was admitted to the University of Puerto Rico's law school. They ended their relationship and briefly reconciled in 2017 before parting ways permanently.

Following the inclusion of de la Cruz's recording in his tracks "Pa Ti" (2016) and "Dos Mil 16" (2022), Bad Bunny has further utilized it in live performances, promotions, and across various media platforms including television, radio, and social media.

In 2022, a representative from his team at that time proposed paying her $2,000 to acquire the recording for his upcoming album "Un Verano Sin Ti". De la Cruz declined the offer, yet the song was still released with the audio, without her consent.

“Since then, thousands of people have commented directly on Carliz’s social media networks, as well as every time she goes to a public place, about the ‘Bad Bunny, baby’. This has caused, and currently causes, that De La Cruz feels worried, anguished, intimidated, overwhelmed and anxious,” the lawsuit stated.

Bad Bunny has yet to make a statement about the lawsuit.