Miley Cyrus

Tempo Music Investments is suing Cyrus and numerous co-defendants, alleging that Flowers infringes its rights in Bruno Mars's When I Was Your Man. The federal proceedings remained active in 2026; summary judgment motions and applications to exclude expert evidence were argued in May, and trial dates were rearranged pending rulings.

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Accused

After extensively using twerking, grills and hip-hop aesthetics during the Bangerz era, Cyrus was accused of cultural appropriation. In 2017, she also said she had distanced herself from rap because of lyrics she considered overly materialistic or sexual, reviving criticism of her privilege in moving in and out of the genre.

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Personally implicated

The Bangerz Tour featured very revealing costumes, simulated sexual gestures, twerking, profanity and explicit drug references, prompting complaints from parents, particularly those whose children had followed her since Hannah Montana.

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The Dominican National Commission for Public Entertainment banned Cyrus's scheduled concert in Santo Domingo, finding that her usual performances included acts contrary to the country's morality and decency standards.

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Political responsibility

Cyrus's performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards, featuring twerking, a flesh-coloured outfit and sexualised gestures with Robin Thicke, triggered international controversy. The Parents Television Council accused MTV of broadcasting adult content while presenting it as accessible to teenagers.

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Directly implicated

On receiving the Best Video award at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Amsterdam, Cyrus produced what was described as a joint, lit it and smoked it on stage, prompting further controversy concerning her image and the normalisation of cannabis.

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Personally implicated

A private video filmed shortly after her 18th birthday showed Cyrus inhaling from a bong and appearing to be under the influence of a substance. Sources close to her claimed that it was salvia, a hallucinogenic plant then legal in California.

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Personally implicated

A photograph showed Cyrus and several friends stretching or narrowing their eyes, a gesture condemned by the Organization of Chinese Americans as a racist caricature of Asian people. Cyrus initially explained that she was making a face without any ethnic intention, then apologised.

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Personally implicated

At 16, Cyrus performed Party in the U.S.A. at the Teen Choice Awards in a short outfit while holding a pole attached to a trolley, a performance widely described as 'pole dancing' and considered by some unsuitable for a programme aimed at young audiences.

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At 15, Cyrus posed for Vanity Fair in an Annie Leibovitz portrait showing her wrapped in a sheet with bare back and shoulders, giving the impression that she was topless. Its publication triggered widespread debate about the sexualisation of an underage star.

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