Miley Cyrus reveals that it was never her decision to use a stripper pole as a prop during her performance at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards. The Disney Channel star says the idea was entirely her mom Tish Cyrus’ doing. At the time, Miley was just 16, and the performance sparked a lot of criticism.
She shared this during a conversation with her sister Brandi Cyrus for Spotify’s Billions Club series, where they discussed the backlash over Miley’s performance of her hit song, “Party In the USA.” “This is going to be no surprise to you. Do you know whose idea that was?” Miley asked Brandi, 37, who correctly guessed that their mom was behind it. Miley responded, “Yup, that was my mom’s idea. So she always lets me take the blame,” adding, “When I got in trouble the next day, you know who was nowhere to be found? Tish Cyrus.” For the performance, Miley wore shorts, black boots, and a tank top, which many viewers found inappropriate and overly sexualized.
“The thing I remember most about that performance was it was the first time I ever wore real diamond jewelry on stage,” Miley said. She then joked, “So you guys remember a little old ice cream truck, I remember the diamonds.”
This isn’t the first time Miley has discussed the performance. She previously shared more details in a TikTok video, according to PEOPLE. “I had cut ‘Party in the U.S.A.’ and I was doing my first performance for the Teen Choice Awards. My mom was like, ‘I think it’d be really cool if she was in the trailer park, that’s where we really do come from,’” she explained in the video.
“So, apparently me dancing on an ice cream cart with a stripper pole, but it wasn’t a stripper pole, it was actually just for stability. I had a heel on! Like, what did you want from me?” she added. “Was I really gonna do my performance without dancing on top of an ice cream cart?”
Miley Cyrus at the Teen Choice Awards in 2009. Photo: The Walt Disney Company; Kevin Winter/Getty
Miley Cyrus at the Teen Choice Awards in 2009. Kevin Mazur/TCA 2009/WireImage
