The pop star is getting candid about the pitfalls of life on the road.
Miley Cyrus is getting candid about the pitfalls of performing. The 30-year-old pop star says that touring "isn't healthy for me" as she opens up about the demands of putting on a long-running production.
In her ABC special, Miley Cyrus: Endless Summer Vacation, as documented in her "Used to Be Young" series on TikTok, Cyrus says that serving as a cheerleader before becoming famous set a precedent for the expectations of life on the road.
"Traveling as a cheerleader really set me up for touring," she shared. "The show or the competition may only be a day, and that’s what people don’t really understand about touring. The show is only 90 minutes, but that’s your life."
Cyrus said that the wellbeing of the performer is not always paramount to keeping the show moving.
"If you're performing at a certain level of intensity and excellence, there should be an equal amount of recovery and rest," she said.
The "Jaded" singer also noted that she struggles to balance her ego with her humanity when constantly entertaining.
"There’s a level of ego that has to play a part that I feel gets overused when I’m on tour. And once that switch is on, it’s hard to turn it off. I think when you’re training your ego every single night to be active, that’s the hardest switch for me to turn off," she admitted. "Having every day the relationship between you and other humans being subject and observer isn’t healthy for me, because it erases my humanity and my connection. And without my humanity, my connection, I can’t be a songwriter, which is my priority."
In typical fashion, the superstar ended her clip with a few off-the-cuff remarks about one surprising side effect from her Bangerz tour.
"You ever seen a girl that's been on tour for two years, they come back with facial hair, I'm telling ya," she joked. "I'll tell you right now, I got dermaplane when I was on Bangerz."
She joked, "We here for Miley, but we got ZZ Top!"
@mileycyrus Used To Be Young (Series) - PART 6
♬ Used To Be Young - Miley Cyrus
Following Cyrus' global Bangerz tour in 2014, she opted to tour on a smaller scale while promoting her subsequent projects. She engaged in the eight-city Milky Milky Milk tour in 2015 and the five-date Attention tour in 2022.
Cyrus has been busy promoting her latest single, "Used to Be Young." In an emotional new music video for the song, Cyrus opens up about the highs and lows of her past.
Cyrus released the song's lyrics in full earlier this month and shared a teaser of the video with fans. Cyrus also shared what inspired her to pen the track.
"These lyrics were written almost 2 years ago at the beginning of my ESV," she wrote of Endless Summer Vacation, the album she released back in March. "It was at a time I felt misunderstood. I have spent the last 18 months painting a sonic picture of my perspective to share with you. The time has arrived to release a song that I could perfect forever."
"Although my work is done, this song will continue to write itself everyday," she continued. "The fact it remains unfinished is a part of its beauty. That is my life at this moment ….. unfinished yet complete. Sincerely, Miley."
As part of her reflection on the past, Cyrus also recently tearfully spoke about her relationship with her father, Billy Ray Cyrus.
"When I was born, my dad had the no. 1 country song," Miley recalled before discussing how she and her father differed in their approach to fame.
"My dad grew up the opposite of me, so I think that's where me and my dad's relationship to fame and success is wildly different," she mused of the "Achy Breaky Heart" singer. "Him feeling loved by a big audience impacted him emotionally more than it ever could me. When he feels special or important, it's like healing a childhood wound. And I've always been made to feel like a star."
The discussion caused the Hannah Montana alum to tear up, admitting, "It makes me emotional, so I think that's the difference," before she wiped away tears, saying, "Oh, it got me."
Looking at a video of her younger self reacting to Billy Ray singing, Miley added, "I do have a lot of great memories singing music with my dad, like, learning and absorbing and I think I can see my wheels turning and watching his voice and the way that he's using the instrument. I will say I feel vocally, my dad was under appreciated."
Miley's video comes shortly after she served as her mom, Tish Cyrus', maid of honor in her recent wedding to Prison Break star Dominic Purcell.
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