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“In societies where modern conditions of production prevail, all of life presents itself as an immense accumulation of spectacles. Everything that was directly lived has moved away into a representation. ”
Guy Debord
Months after the now infamous VMA awards, society continues to feel the shock-waves of Miley Cyrus’ lucrative on-stage display. With the current social networking scene governed by short lived trends and fleeting scandalous stories, the awards show has reached a popularity mile-stone in its unwillingness to be shoved from the public eye. Images of the Disney Princess in her nude two-piece costume – tongue lolling from her mouth – ‘twerking’ on fellow musician, Robin Thicke, has mutated into comedic internet memes and celebrated gifs which are passed around blogging sites and discussion forums like hot cakes on a cold Winter’s day. While the backlash has been formidable and left fans divided over the lewd display, (though some die-hard aficionados cling to their lackadaisical arguments for feminine empowerment) it remains the fact that society has caught a bad case of Miley fever; a malaise that has inflated the celebrity’s notoriety to unfathomable levels, especially when one considers the banality of her performance.
Cyrus has confessed in an array of interviews and twitter posts since the incident, that her routine with Thicke highlighted the basic discrepancies in equality and ‘freedom of speech’, namely through the lack of criticism her co-performer suffered from the event. “No-one talks about that,” Cyrus replies in her interview with DeGeneres when Thicke’s part in the concert is discussed. “No-one cares about the man behind the booty. You only care about the one that’s shaking it. Double standard.” Having shouldered the blame (and levied most of the fame) for the incident, there rests shards of truth in the Tennessee native’s words. However, the message that rings clearer is that the insufferable attention she received at the VMAs has fostered a new interest in the adjoining aspects of the celebrity’s life – spurring magazine houses and news centres into covering all aspects of Cyrus’ world; from her family history and decaying relationship with her fiancée, to speculations of drug use and future promiscuity. This heightened exposure has been the bane of many A-listers and their connecting damage control parties, but Cyrus seems unperturbed by the swelling hype. ”I don’t pay attention to the negative,” she says in her interview with The Daily Mail. “You might as well make people talk for two weeks rather than two seconds.” Clearly desiring more than the standard fifteen minutes of fame, the 20-year old can be seen as embracing her succès de scandale, going so far as to call her performance a “strategic hot mess.” And what a strategic success it was.
As one who witnessed the VMAs, there is very little aside from Miley Cyrus’ two-song appearance that I can recall. Flashes of an N-SYNC reunion and the sea-shells of Lady Gaga’s bikini top are hazy images subsumed by a mass of Cyrus’ disjointed ‘dance’ moves with an unfortunate Styrofoam finger, to music that I could not hope to remember. From a PR standpoint, I could think of no greater success for the Cyrus team. Nestled comfortably in the backlog of public interest and disdain, Miley released her newest single ‘Wrecking Ball’; a mediocre song showcasing the young adult’s nudity and visual suggestiveness that has soared to over 200 million views on Youtube. Compared to her earlier hits in 2010, such as ‘Who Owns My Heart’ and ‘When I look At You’, (which are averaging at 90,000,000 views) Miley’s histrionic, racy persona has demanded greater public notice. While the comments on the streaming website remain scathing from the most ardent critics, the message of Cyrus’ stunt is incontrovertible: the spectacle commands the attention of the hoi polloi. In a world where the homogenization of culture and the plethora of media stimuli has inured society to the ordinary, the music industry relies on a series of increasing shocks to stimulate growth and interest. With music blurring into a series of indistinguishable auto tuned idols and analogous R&B beats, artists and their sponsors choose to differentiate themselves through these strategic boundary-pushing acts to gain unhampered public notice. By following this marketing plan, Cyrus has rocketed her latest album, Bangerz to a comfortable seat at number one, proving that there is no such thing as bad publicity. In the backdrop of Cyrus’ centre stage presence, fellow musicians like Rihanna and Lady Gaga seem to be following the ex-Disney star’s footsteps, churning out near pornographic videos to accompany their forgettable songs in hopes of exciting their increasingly jaded consumers into a fleeting frenzy.
Her latest stint at the AMAs is keeping the ball rolling. Modestly dressed in comparison to the nude two-piece she wore during her last performance, “the reason why she wore such a conservative outfit on the red carpet at the AMAs is because producers wanted a show that the whole family could watch, and they didn’t want any boobs or butts or slips.” This didn’t stop producers from filming her from the waist up during most of her routine while the twenty-one year entertained audience with her performance of ‘Wrecking Ball’. Procuring more attention than her risqué kitten themed wardrobe was Miley’s stage accomplish – a giant, ginger pussycat that lip-synced the song. Perhaps a gibe at the AMAs for threatening to cut the show if Miley misbehaved, the mischievous Miley Kit pushes the envelope discreetly against the AMAs conservative producer as a playful jab at the sweet and innocent persona they urge Miley to adopt. On top of that it is a beautiful PR move that merges the internet’s love of cats with Miley’s evolving TV personality, leading to another over-exposed performance that leaves viewers itching for more.
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