14 DAY TRIAL // The news that young Miley Cyrus was elected by MTV as Artist of the Year is probably no surprise to anyone who has seen her antics pretty much wherever she went. 2013 was undoubtedly “Year of the Miley” as the “Wrecking Ball” singer tried her best to leave her Hannah Montana image behind.
It might have come as quite a shock to many fans to see Miley twerking for the first time in March to J Dash's “WOP,” albeit while dressed in a unicorn onesie that left little of her face showing, but no one imagined that this was to become her signature move.
She made headlines with her engagement to actor Liam Hemsworth, breaking it, patching it up and then splitting again. But in the latter part of the year, Miley had a real revolution lined up.
It started with the release of her new album “Bangerz,” which soared to the top of the charts, earning her attention for her songs but also for her videos. Take for instance "Wrecking Ball,” which saw Miley, stripped of more than her inhibitions, put on deep red lipstick and swing on a giant metal wrecking ball, while talking of heartbreak.
Her domination was made complete with her performances at the MTV VMAs, where she shocked the world by twerking with giant teddy bears in a skin-colored latex outfit that left little to the imagination, and at the EMAs, where she again shocked fans and audiences by lighting what appeared to be a joint on stage.
This MTV nomination and win did not come out of the blue, and those who paid attention saw the signs: Miley's “Wrecking Ball” was the most watched video on Vevo this year, her MTV profile page was the most accessed, and she even made Time Magazine's Person of the Year nominations list.
Even if she was snubbed at the Grammys, Miley Cyrus still gets the last laugh, as MTV crowns her Artist of the Year, surpassing Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (on second place), Justin Timberlake (on third place), Kanye West (on fourth place), One Direction (on fifth place) and Katy Perry (on sixth place).
The rest of the top is made up of rapper Drake on the number seven spot, Bruno Mars at number eight, Lorde at number nine and Lady Gaga coming in last at number ten.
Hate her or love her, Miley Cyrus seemed to be on everyone's lips and minds this year, and it doesn't look like she's going anywhere soon. After successfully reinventing herself and making a departure from her Disney star days, she's made a switch from pop to hip-hop and looks posed to offer even more shocking performances in the future.
MTV says that the ultimate decision to cast Miley on top was that “compared to the Arianas and Selenas of the world, Miley's decisions don't feel as if they're the end product of branding meetings and focus groups. Instead, they are unfiltered (and unhinged) to the max.”