menu_open Columnists
We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

This 2013 Miley Cyrus Hit Was Originally Meant for Another Huge Artist, and I Can’t Help but Think About What Could Have Been

11 0
27.04.2026

Get unlimited access to everything VICE has to offer.

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

4 Magazines Delivered to Your Door

This 2013 Miley Cyrus Hit Was Originally Meant for Another Huge Artist, and I Can’t Help but Think About What Could Have Been

What would modern pop culture look like if Miley Cyrus never released Bangerz?

Share on X (Opens in new window)X

Share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Facebook

Share using Native toolsShareCopied to clipboard

Miley Cyrus technically made her post-Disney debut in 2010 with Can’t Be Tamed. But her 2013 resurgence really put a much finer point on the separation. Cyrus left Disney-owned Hollywood Records that year to sign with RCA Records, and Bangerz dropped later in October.

And of course, there was the infamous MTV VMAs performance two months earlier. Overall, these were the pop culture moments that solidified Cyrus as an artist and a young woman beyond Hannah Montana. Bangerz was a turbulent era for sure, and not everyone was ready for Miley Cyrus to embrace her maturity and sexuality. This reluctance to allow child stars to grow up has been happening for ages.

I don’t Even Want to Think About What the Pop Culture Landscape Would Look Like if Miley Cyrus Never Released “We Can’t Stop”

Somehow, it seems to happen........

© Vice