When she was 12, Miley Cyrus burst onto the public scene as ‘Hannah Montana’ for Disney, growing up right before her fans eyes. Cyrus has been criticized the past couple of years for growing up too fast and trying to become too sexy too soon. In a recent interview with Amanda de Cadenet on Lifetime’s ‘The Conversation with Amanda de Cadenet,’ Cyrus said she knows the expectations the world has for her and that it is hard to live up to them as a 19-year-old.
“I feel I was so trained in my interviews to be All-American or whatever. I just got so set in the way of saying the same things I did when I was 12-years-old… I guess I kind of realized that my whole life isn’t one giant press junket. I don’t have to be smiling all the time and always have the perfect answer.”
Cyrus has found herself defending her views on gay marriage and religion over the past couple of years as well as her ‘sexier’ appearance.
“For me, what I do [being sexy] is not the point. You’re not sitting there trying to be sexy. If people find that [I am], I take it as a compliment,” she said. “People are so scared of seeing a woman being like, ‘This is who I am and you’re not going to change it.’”
A couple of Cyrus’ toughest critics have described her as ‘disgusting’ and Cyrus says that she believes the entertainment industry has forced her into behaving a certain way.
“[It] used to be if you’re a woman you do not sing about sex, and now if that’s not what you’re singing about, if that’s not your entire image, you won’t get played [on radio and TV],” she explained. “The last season of [“Hannah Montana”] I put out “Can’t Be Tamed,” which even just the title of that for a woman to say that she can’t be tamed, and of all people in the world, my face saying I can’t be tamed, when that’s all people really wanted to do — I think that proves how sexist people still really are and judgmental. It’s the whole thing of saying ‘be sexy, but our way.”
Cyrus explained how there are young girls out there today who value themselves based on how they interact sexually.
“The girls that really base how much they’re worth on the sexual favors they can do for somebody, that makes me really sad. Because sex is actually really beautiful. It’s the only way we create, and it’s the only way the world keeps going. So it’s ignorant not to talk to your kids about it or [not] make it seem as magical or cool as it actually is,” she explained. “[Kids] have a TV, so they know what sex is. So educate them and let them know … it’s a beautiful thing, and it is magic, and it’s when you connect with somebody. And it isn’t how much you’re worth. Your worth isn’t based on that, your worth is based on how you feel about yourself.”
Cyrus goes on to say that the expectations of her from the world have taken their toll on her.
“I’ve lost [my sense of self] a lot. There’s times you hear what you should be so much that you lose what you actually are, and that’s really hard,” she said.