Honestly, if you close your eyes and think about the VMAs, you probably see a foam finger. It’s been over a decade, but that specific image of Miley Cyrus at the 2013 MTV VMAs is basically burnt into the collective retina of pop culture. It was the twerk heard ‘round the world. People lost their minds. Parents groups were calling for boycotts, and Twitter—back when we still called it that—nearly snapped in half.
But here’s the thing. We usually talk about Miley’s VMA history like it’s just one weird night with Robin Thicke. It wasn't. Her relationship with that stage is a whole saga of reinvention, from a literal Disney princess to a psychedelic host and, eventually, a stripped-back rock vocalist.
That 2013 Night: It Wasn't Just About the Twerking
Let’s get into the weeds of 2013. Miley didn’t just show up and dance; she executed a total assassination of her "Hannah Montana" persona in about six minutes. She walked out of a giant mechanical bear. She wore a fuzzy grey one-piece. Then, the "Blurred Lines" moment happened.
The beige latex bikini. The tongue. The grinding against Robin Thicke.
Looking back, the reaction was pretty wild. The Parents Television Council went nuclear. But for Miley, it was a business move. She later told Wonderland magazine that the performance changed her life and career forever because it gave her a platform she didn't have before. Suddenly, everyone was paying attention, even if they were mad.
There’s a darker side to that 2013 Miley Cyrus MTV VMA moment that people often skip over, though. It sparked a massive, necessary conversation about cultural appropriation. Critics like Haley Zblewski pointed out that Miley was essentially using Black dancers and "urban" aesthetics as props to prove she was "edgy." She wasn't just being "naughty"—she was trying to "sound Black" (her own songwriters at the time noted she wanted a sound that felt like Rihanna). It’s a complicated legacy that goes way deeper than just a foam finger.
2015: "Miley, What’s Good?"
Fast forward two years. Miley is hosting the show. She’s in full "Dead Petz" era, wearing outfits made of clear plastic and crystals that barely qualified as clothes. But the real story wasn't her hosting—it was the moment Nicki Minaj took the mic.
Accepting the award for Best Hip-Hop Video for "Anaconda," Nicki turned to Miley and dropped the line: "And now back to this bitch that had a lot to say about me the other day in the press—Miley, what’s good?"
Miley looked genuinely stunned for a second. The "press" Nicki was talking about was a New York Times interview where Miley had weighed in on Nicki’s frustrations with the VMAs' lack of diversity in the Video of the Year category. Miley basically told the reporter that Nicki was "not too kind" and "not very polite."
It was a cringey, tense, "is this scripted?" moment. It wasn't scripted. It was a collision of a white pop star trying to police the tone of a Black woman who was calling out systemic bias. Miley tried to pivot by blaming the media for "manipulating" interviews, but the damage was done. That phrase, "Miley, what’s good?" became a permanent part of the internet's vocabulary.
The 2019 Pivot: Black, White, and Brokenhearted
By 2019, the tongue and the glitter were gone. Miley showed up to perform "Slide Away," and the vibe was completely different. It was somber. It was classy. It was also incredibly sad.
She had just split from Liam Hemsworth. The performance was broadcast entirely in black and white. No giant bears. No backup dancers. Just Miley, a microphone, and a string section.
The lyrics "Move on, we're not 17 / I'm not who I used to be" hit hard because we’d literally watched her grow up on that specific stage. It felt like the final funeral for the 2013 version of herself. She wasn't trying to shock anyone anymore; she was just trying to survive a divorce in front of millions of people.
Why Miley Cyrus Still Matters to the VMAs
MTV needs Miley as much as she needed them. She’s one of the few remaining "event" stars. You never know if you're getting the country girl, the rock star, or the psychedelic raver.
- 2008: Her first nomination for "7 Things." She was just a kid in a Zac Posen dress.
- 2014: She won Video of the Year for "Wrecking Ball" but let a homeless man named Jesse Helt accept the award to raise awareness for youth homelessness.
- 2020: She performed "Midnight Sky" while climbing a giant disco ball—a literal nod to her "Wrecking Ball" past but with a 1980s Stevie Nicks coat of paint.
She's won two VMAs in total (though she’s been nominated dozens of times). It’s funny that for someone who basically is the VMAs, her trophy cabinet for that specific show is actually kind of small.
What We Can Learn From the Miley Era
Miley’s VMA journey is basically a case study in how to navigate the "post-Disney" trap. She didn't just transition; she exploded. If you're looking at her career, the takeaway isn't that you should go out and buy a foam finger. It’s that reinvention is a requirement for longevity in pop music.
You have to be willing to be the villain for a while. You have to be willing to look "crazy" to break out of a box. But you also have to be willing to grow up and admit when those previous versions of you—like the 2013 "Bangerz" era—were maybe a bit misguided or culturally insensitive.
If you want to understand the modern pop landscape, you have to watch the 2013 and 2015 VMAs back-to-back. It tells you everything you need to know about how the industry treats race, sexuality, and the frantic need to stay relevant at any cost.
Next time the VMAs roll around, don't just look at the outfits. Look at who is being "impolite" and who is trying to keep things "nice." That’s where the real story usually lives.
To really see the evolution yourself, go back and watch the "Slide Away" performance immediately after the 2013 medley. The vocal growth is staggering. It's the best way to see how she went from using her body as a distraction to using her voice as the main event.