“I think it makes the contestants feel safer,” says Cyrus of her colorful wardrobe. “When I turn around, people laugh and feel lighthearted. I think they get to see that side of me.”
For many years, Cyrus had a different public persona. “People saw me as being wild, and literally all I do is I’m obsessed with yoga, I love hiking, and I’m reading constantly. My life is so positive. From the outside, people think I’m partying with rappers. That was back in my prime.”
It’s hard to keep a straight face when Cyrus uses that line — she’s only 23. Then again, she’s been on television since grade school. At 11, Cyrus was cast as the squeaky-clean face of Disney Channel’s “Hannah Montana,” which made her the Hayley Mills of her generation. The role brought intense tabloid scrutiny, particularly as she tried to grow up. “I had a clothing line at Walmart and got kicked out, because they said you had to choose weed or Walmart,” Cyrus says. “And you see what I did — I chose weed.”
In 2013, the Miley media circus reached a tipping point at the VMAs, where she gyrated alongside a row of teddy bears. She insists that the moment was misunderstood. “That was a joke,” she says. Cyrus has taken a U-turn since then. Her new career path revolves around her foundation: Happy Hippie, dedicated to supporting at-risk LGBTQ and homeless youth. “I am only doing ‘The Voice’ because that helps Happy Hippie,” Cyrus says about engaging the show’s audience to promote her cause.
Cyrus has headlined such films as “The Last Song” and “Bolt,” but she’s ambivalent about making movies now. “I know that acting is boring,” she says. “People get paid way too much for what they are doing.” She almost turned down the Woody Allen TV series “Crisis in Six Scenes” but was eventually won over by the role — playing a 1960s activist.
Over a vegan lunch in Los Angeles, Cyrus talked about what drives her, recalled how she struggled with her pansexual identity as a teenager (she’s currently dating Liam Hemsworth), and shared her thoughts on the election.
