Cheetos is teaming up with singer Bad Bunny for a campaign meant to inspire creativity that leans on the phrase “deja tu huella,” or "leave your mark."

The Frito-Lay snack brand is kicking off a months-long effort to engage with its Hispanic fan base through music, fashion and other forms of entertainment. Cheetos teased the collaboration with the singer on Tuesday by releasing an image of Bad Bunny alongside spokescharacter Chester Cheetah.

News of a partnership had already been trending among Bad Bunny fans after the Puerto Rican music star was spotted in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles on Oct. 23, clutching a bag of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos as he was being filmed. Buzz about the shoot spread on social media and garnered coverage by outlets including the Los Angeles Times.

“His star is on the rise right now,” says Marissa Solis, senior VP of marketing at Frito-Lay North America. “He’s one of those people who leaves his mark on anything he does.”

And, she says, he is a fan of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos—and ate a lot of them on set. 

Cheetos tweeted its own reference to the shoot on Friday after Bad Bunny had left the crowded area. 

The campaign is one piece of Cheetos' Latin push. The Oct. 26 release of the nominees for the 2020 American Music Awards included the announcement that Cheetos is presenting four new Latin categories at the AMAs: favorite female artist, favorite male artist, favorite album and favorite song. Bad Bunny happened to be listed four times within those newly expanded categories, with nominations for favorite male artist, Latin; two nominations for favorite album, Latin, for “Las que no iban a salir” and “YHLQMDLG;” and a nomination for favorite song, Latin, for “Vete.”

The first Cheetos spot featuring Bad Bunny will debut during the American Music Awards show on ABC on Nov. 22.

Cheetos came up with the idea to celebrate Hispanic culture using the phrase “deja tu huella,” then decided on Bad Bunny to be the first face of the effort, says Solis. A second collaboration, in a space such as fashion or entertainment, is planned for 2021, says Solis. 

'Loud and clear' commitment

PepsiCo has a long history of partnering with musicians, but its Cheetos brand has done less in the space than, for example, the soft drink brand Pepsi, whose music tie-ins have included sponsoring the Super Bowl halftime show. Cheetos collaborating with Bad Bunny shows an effort to connect with Hispanic fans as well as the singer’s broader fan base. The push is meant to show how Hispanic artists leave their marks on Latinx culture and in culture overall, says Solis. 

“We want to make sure our commitment to the Hispanic community is loud and clear,” says Solis.

The campaign will include ads in Spanish, in English and in Spanglish, Solis says.

No word, for now, on whether Cheetos will return to the Super Bowl. This year’s spot for the big game featured a different musician: MC Hammer.

Cheetos announced plans to give $500,000 to the Hispanic community in partnership with Bad Bunny’s Good Bunny Foundation to encourage people to get into the arts. The commitment is separate from PepsiCo’s plan to support the Latino community with $170 million over five years. 

Dieste is the lead agency on the project, with VaynerMedia on social and Ketchum on PR.