Maluma interrupted his concert in Mexico City this week to address what he viewed as unsafe conditions for a young child in the audience. The Colombian singer, currently on the Mexico leg of his +Pretty +Dirty World Tour, paused mid-show to admonish a woman who had brought a baby to the event without any hearing protection.

The incident occurred at the Palacio de los Deportes, where Maluma stopped the music after noticing the child. In a moment captured on video and widely shared online, he addressed the woman directly. “With all due respect… how old are they?” he asked, before clarifying that the baby appeared to be about a year old. “Do you think it’s a good idea to bring a one-year-old baby to a concert where the decibels are this high? That baby doesn’t even know what it’s doing here,” he continued.

Maluma urged the parent to consider the potential harm of loud concert environments for children, particularly those without protective gear. “Next time, protect their ears or something. For real. It’s heavy. It’s your responsibility,” he said, adding that the child was being waved around “like a toy.” The singer emphasized that his comments came “with all love and respect,” but noted that becoming a father himself had changed his perspective. “Now that I’m a father, I would never bring them to a concert. For the next time, be a bit more aware,” he said.

The exchange sparked online discussion, with many fans applauding the artist for speaking out about child safety in loud environments, while others debated whether the public nature of the criticism was necessary.

Maluma’s +Pretty +Dirty World Tour began in Spain in March and has included performances across Europe and Latin America. The current run of Mexican shows started in Mexico City on Aug. 6 and will continue through Aug. 16 in Guadalajara, before concluding with an Aug. 23 performance in El Salvador.

The Mexico City stop was not the first time this year Maluma has been linked to debates involving music and children. In June, Colombia’s Constitutional Court issued a ruling against him and several other high-profile Colombian artists, including Karol G, J Balvin, and Feid, over their involvement in the song “+57.” The court determined that the original version of the track, released in November 2024, violated the rights of children due to lyrics that it found sexualized minors.

The song featured a large roster of Colombian performers and quickly drew criticism for a line in which Maluma and Feid sang, in Spanish, “A hottie since she was 14 / When she walks into the club, you can feel her energy.” After public backlash, the lyric was amended to say “A hottie since she was 18,” though the original version had already generated significant controversy.

In its decision, the court cited the responsibility of artists to avoid content that could normalize or promote harmful depictions of minors. While the ruling did not impose criminal penalties, it served as a formal rebuke to the artists involved.