Miley Cyrus Revealed The Truth Behind Her 2009 "Stripper Pole" Teen Choice Awards Performance

    I totally agree about the hat.

    The year was 2009.

    two people wearing 2009 glasses

    People were entranced by Kate Gosselin's reverse-mullet spiky bob.

    closeup of kate

    Bumpits were an actual thing people wore.

    snookie wearing a bumpit in her hair

    And Courteney Cox just *really* had to show Shrek something on her Blackberry.

    closeup of the two at an event

    This was also the year the world was enraged at Miley Cyrus for "pole dancing" during the Teen Choice Awards.

    miley singing while holding onto a pole with her hand

    In case you haven't been following, Miley Cyrus has been dissecting her past in a TikTok series.

    “So… i do think this girl deserves a little endless summer vacation…”

    - miley cyrus reacting to her work schedule as a 13 years old… insane. pic.twitter.com/QDmOb2e9co

    — Miley Nation (@MileyNation13) August 29, 2023
    Twitter: @MileyNation13

    Her latest video is about this infamous Teen Choice Awards performance:

    miley singing while holding onto a pole

    That performance of "Party In The U.S.A." caused quite a stir, not because of that cheap, late '00s fedora, but because people thought she was dancing on a stripper pole.

    closeup of miley singing

    Miley told the real story behind what actually went on with *that* pole in this TikTok:

    @mileycyrus

    Used To Be Young (Series) - PART 21

    ♬ Used To Be Young - Miley Cyrus
    @mileycyrus/tiktok.com

    "So, I had cut 'Party In The USA,' and I was doing my first performance for the Teen Choice Awards," she explained. "My mom was like, 'I think it would be really cool if she was in the trailer park because that's where we're really from.'"

    miley during the interview

    "So, apparently, me dancing on an ice cream cart with a stripper pole, but it wasn't a stripper pole, it was actually for stability," she said. "I had a heal on! Guys, what did you want from me?"

    "Was I really gonna do my performance without dancing on top of an ice cream cart?" she asked.

    miley holding a tablet and talking into the camera

    Miley ultimately only had two criticisms of the performance: "My pitch was a little off, and my hat needed to go."

    closeup of miley wearing a fedora for the performance

    Which, like, hard agree. The hat is the only thing that needed to go!

    miley with a hand on her hat