San Francisco, CA

Super Bowl live updates: Block parties, concerts happening all week long in Bay Area

Published

4 weeks ago

February 5, 2026

Super Bowl live updates: Block parties, concerts happening all week long in Bay Area

FILE – Puerto Rico artist Bad Bunny performs during his “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS” tour in Mexico City on Dec. 10, 2025.

Bad Bunny is expected to perform the Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday entirely in Spanish — which has inspired fans to quickly learn the language.

In October, the Puerto Rican singer — born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio — kicked off the 51st season of “Saturday Night Live” expressing pride over the achievement in Spanish, after which he said in English, “If you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn!”

That declaration further stoked the anger of some conservatives who have vilified Bad Bunny for speaking out against President Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant policies. The singer canceled the U.S. portion of his tour last year out of fear that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents would target his fans.

There’s been a frenzy online of people posting about Bad Bunny lyrics, including Puerto Ricans explaining slang used by the singer and non-Spanish speakers documenting their journey to learn Spanish.

Anticipation for his halftime performance has only intensified since last weekend, when his album, ” Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” became the first Spanish-language album to win the Grammy for album of the year. He did not shy away from addressing targeted federal immigration operations at the awards.

“Before I say thanks to God, I’m going to say ICE out,” he said in English after winning his first Grammy for música urbana album. “We’re not savage, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.”

Fans are learning Spanish before the Super Bowl

Niklaus Miller, 29, has been buckling down on learning Bad Bunny lyrics since the singer’s SNL appearance months ago.

“I am delusional enough to be like ‘this would be easy. I could pick it up pretty quickly,’” Miller said.

The fervor to learn a new language within a short time span highlights the powerful impact of Latino culture in the U.S. despite the president’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and actions.

“It felt like a form of protest,” Miller said. “What can I do right now besides what everyone is doing that is trying to help? It just feels good.”

Miller said he has gotten messages from people who watch his videos with their parents since he started posting about the process of learning Spanish. They say they feel seen and appreciated.

While Miller hasn’t learned Bad Bunny’s entire discography, he has learned portions of six songs that he feels will be part of the halftime show, including “Tití Me Preguntó,” “DtMF” and “Baile Inolvidable.”

The day after Bad Bunny was announced as the halftime act, O’Neil Thomas, 28, a New York City actor and content creator, started learning the singer’s catalog.

“I was just so excited because he wasn’t an artist that I expected,” Thomas said. “And given how we are right now with the state of the country I think he is the perfect person to headline such a humongous stage.”

The response to his TikTok videos – showing Thomas learning “NUEVAYoL” and other tracks — have been really positive, Thomas added. Many Puerto Rican people have reached out, saying they’re proud that someone outside the community is attempting to learn about their culture.

Latin music and culture intensify interest in language

“People were already starting to make the effort with learning Spanish as a result of their interest in Latin music,” said Vanessa Díaz, associate professor of Chicano and Latino studies at Loyola Marymount University. “The Super Bowl itself is an additional push for a trend that was already happening.”

Díaz, who is the co-author of “P FKN R: How Bad Bunny Became the Global Voice of Puerto Rican Resistance,” says the rise of Latin music over the past decade has pushed non-Spanish speakers to learn the language. Bad Bunny’s clear messaging in his lyrics, videos and performances amplifies that interest, Díaz said.

Spanish is the most spoken language at home behind English in the U.S. — except in three states, according to U.S. Census data. Over 13% of residents age 5 and older speak it.

For Thomas, Bad Bunny’s music offered the perfect opportunity to take on the challenge of learning a new language.

“I love Spanish and I always wanted to learn it,” Thomas said. “So, this has been a fun introduction for me to finally hone in.”

Both Miller and Thomas said that learning Spanish, specifically Puerto Rican Spanish, in a short period of time has been a unique challenge.

Thomas said listening to Bad Bunny’s music casually is a different experience than learning the lyrics.

“Listening to his music is really fun,” Thomas said. “The amount of times I’ve pressed rewind just to get a phrase, I can’t even count.”

Miller said the hard part about learning the songs is that the Puerto Rican dialect tends to chop some words and it is very fast. Miller said if he hasn’t worked on understanding a song for days, he might forget the pronunciation and it’s hard to come back to it.

“It’s fun but then stressful because I am a Type-A person, so that’s been hard, honestly,” Miller said. “I’m firing on all cylinders.”

A landmark for Latino culture is also politically divisive

Bad Bunny’s booking at the Super Bowl has been divisive from the start. Trump called the selection “ridiculous.” Conservatives have called it anti-American — even though native-born Puerto Ricans are also U.S. citizens. Turning Point USA is putting on an alternative “All-American Halftime Show” with a lineup led by Kid Rock.

This all comes against the backdrop of Latinos and Spanish-speaking communities being targeted in Trump’s immigration crackdowns. His executive actions have vastly expanded who is eligible for deportation and routine hearings have turned into deportation traps for migrants.

For Bad Bunny, the halftime show is the ultimate stage to showcase his music, heritage and global influence. For the NFL and Apple Music, it’s a balancing act: deliver a spectacle that celebrates diversity without igniting controversy that scares off advertisers.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has stood by the choice, citing Bad Bunny’s immense popularity.

Petra Rivera-Rideau, associate professor of American studies at Wellesley College and co-author of “P FKN R,” said there’s a long history in the U.S. of Spanish being criminalized.

Bad Bunny is making it cool to know the language and changing the narrative around it, Diaz said. Now Spanish is something that people are aspiring to learn.

Díaz doesn’t think his performance will necessarily shift how Latinos are perceived in the U.S. but she says it will create an interesting conversation depending on “how people are going to grapple with the magnitude of having someone like Bad Bunny on the stage.”

At a time when “the U.S. is targeting Latinos and migrants and Spanish speakers or even those who are just perceived to be any of those things in a way that we haven’t seen in our lifetimes,” his visibility is powerful, Diaz said.

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San Francisco, CA

Floats for San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade get finishing touches

Published

12 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Floats for San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade get finishing touches

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — ABC7 Eyewitness News got a sneak peak as crews put the finishing touches on the floats you’ll see at Saturday’s San Francisco Chinese New Year Festival and Parade.

Since it’s the year of the fire horse, you’ll see a lot of horses and fire symbolism on the floats, housed at Pier 19.

“So Year of the Horse, it’s energy, it’s passion, it’s momentum so a lot of things that we’re really hoping to embody in the new year,” said Stephanie Mufson, owner of San Francisco-based The Parade Guys, which designs and constructs the floats.

She said they’ve been building them for about three months, with the designs starting in November.

MORE: Bay Area artist brings Year of the Horse statue to life for Golden State Warriors

“We’re in the home stretch,” she said. “We’ve got a couple of days left and we’ve got a nice little team that’s cranking out all the finishing work that needs to go into it.”

Derrick Shavers was sanding some wood that will be painted and become cherry blossom trees on a float.

“It’s exciting,” Shavers said. “I look forward to coming every year and just creating and making things shine and sparkle.”

Bon was painting mountains for a float, making sure everything is perfect in time for the parade.

MORE: Meet the 2026 San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade mascot, Maverick

“It’s one of the few parades that actually happens at night still,” Bon said. “So we got to make sure all the lighting is in check, and people are safe on the float. It’s all in the details, just for it to walk by you for 10 seconds.”

Ten seconds that bring so much joy to those watching the parade.

Here’s how you can watch the parade on ABC7 Eyewitness News on Saturday, March 7.

Coverage starts at 5 p.m. wherever you stream ABC7.

SF Chinese New Year Parade 2026: How to watch ABC7 Eyewitness News live coverage

If you’re on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live

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San Francisco, CA

Celebrated San Francisco historic landmark, the Huntington Hotel officially reopens

Published

24 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Celebrated San Francisco historic landmark, the Huntington Hotel officially reopens

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — First opened as apartments in 1922 and converted into a hotel two years later, the Huntington was once a playground for socialites and Hollywood stars.

It shut its doors in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and remained shuttered until this week, following new owners and a million-dollar, top-to-bottom renovation.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for The Huntington Hotel in San Francisco’s Nob Hill neighborhood Monday.

The hotel officially reopened on Sunday.

Mayor Daniel Lurie attended the celebration for the hotel on California Street.

“This is another sign that San Francisco is on the rise, when you have major institutions and major hotels reopening,” Lurie said. “We’re seeing it in Union Square. We’re seeing it now up here on Nob Hill. This is an exciting moment for San Francisco.”

What doom loop? Downtown San Francisco showing signs of economic rebound, experts say

The hotel, known for its iconic sign, will be restoring the landmark sign to its former glory.

Many say it’s a symbol of what’s going on in San Francisco.

MORE: Nordstrom making return to San Francisco with new concept, mixed reactions

“It came to symbolize San Francisco’s decline during COVID when it shut and it now, I think, symbolizes San Francisco’s rebirth,” said Greg Flynn, Flynn Group Founder, Chairman, and CEO. “It’s sort of the perfect symbol of it because it’s coming back better than it ever was.”

Alex Bastian, President and CEO of the Hotel Council of San Francisco, said hotel occupancy rates are up in 2024.

“Our data team crunched the numbers, and the four-week rolling hotel occupancy rate for San Francisco Bay Area hotels is 55.1 percent as of January 17 of this year. Compare that to January 17 of 2021, during the pandemi,c when it was 13.1 percent.”

Of course, the Super Bowl helped.

Here’s what Super Bowl LX visitors are saying about San Francisco

“There’s no marketing campaign better than what we achieved as San Franciscans,” Bastian said. “The mayor and his team really elevated the game. They did an incredible job. We are so fortunate, as a city, because so many came here and they left their hearts here in San Francisco.”

Eyewitness News wasn’t allowed to gather video of the hotel’s features, but the hotel provided renderings of a sample room.

Matthew de Quillien, The Huntington Hotel General Manager, said the hotel has 143 rooms, many of them suites. Also, the Nob Hill Spa, Arabella’s Cocktail Salo,n and a reopening of The Big Four Restaurant, featuring its famous chicken pot pie.

“Our owner was able to find the original recipe from the 70’s and we remastered it and we’re … serving it to our guests,” de Quillien said.

He said rates range from $600 a night to $7,000 a night for its Presidential suite.

The restaurant opens to the public on March 17.

If you’re on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live

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San Francisco, CA

Vigil held for 2-year-old girl killed in SF Mission Bay crash

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Vigil held for 2-year-old girl killed in SF Mission Bay crash

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Walk SF and Families for Safe Streets held a vigil Monday evening to honor a 2-year-old girl who was struck and killed by a driver Friday night in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood.

The crash happened just before 9 p.m. at Fourth and Channel streets near Oracle Park. Police said the child’s mother was also injured and taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The driver remained at the scene, and authorities said drugs or alcohol are not believed to be factors.

Community heartbroken

Community members gathered at the intersection Monday to light candles and lay flowers. Among them was the Howard family.

“We’re just heartbroken and sad,” said Hidelisa Howard.

“I was thinking about heartbroken parents, someone who cannot get their daughter back,” said John Howard.

The intersection is designated as part of San Francisco’s 2022 High Injury Network, identifying streets with the highest concentration of severe and fatal traffic crashes. Speed cameras were recently installed in the surrounding neighborhood.

Jodie Medeiros, executive director of Walk SF, called the crash a tragedy, noting a previous fatal collision involving a child at Fourth and King streets several years ago.

Traffic intensifies

Parents in the area said traffic has intensified with nearby events and development.

“We love having people here in the neighborhood, and it’s brought a lot of life to the area,” said Hidelisa Howard, who lives nearby. “But at the same time, we have people coming in from out of the area. They’re not familiar with the streets, they’re running the lights, they’re running the crosswalks.”

District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey said the intersection has been problematic.

“Sometimes people go too fast. I don’t know that this was the issue here, but we need to do everything we can to make our neighborhoods and our streets safer,” Dorsey said.

On Monday, crews with the SFMTA repainted crosswalks and re-timed traffic signals at the intersection.

“It just feels like there’s so many young children in this neighborhood that there should be improvements made to the way that the traffic flows around here,” said Aanisha Jain, a San Francisco resident.

San FranciscoNews

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