[Mrluvaluva]

OPEN LETTER TO MILEY CYRUS

Dear Miley,

I wasn’t going to write this letter, but today i’ve been dodging phone calls from various newspapers who wished me to remark upon your having said in Rolling Stone your Wrecking Ball video was designed to be similar to the one for Nothing Compares… So this is what I need to say… And it is said in the spirit of motherliness and with love.

Youtube video

Directors cut of Wrecking Ball


I am extremely concerned for you that those around you have led you to believe, or encouraged you in your own belief, that it is in any way ‘cool’ to be naked and licking sledgehammers in your videos. It is in fact the case that you will obscure your talent by allowing yourself to be pimped, whether its the music business or yourself doing the pimping.

Nothing but harm will come in the long run, from allowing yourself to be exploited, and it is absolutely NOT in ANY way an empowerment of yourself or any other young women, for you to send across the message that you are to be valued (even by you) more for your sexual appeal than your obvious talent.

I am happy to hear I am somewhat of a role model for you and I hope that because of that you will pay close attention to what I am telling you.
The music business doesn’t give a **** about you, or any of us. They will prostitute you for all you are worth, and cleverly make you think its what YOU wanted.. and when you end up in rehab as a result of being prostituted, ‘they’ will be sunning themselves on their yachts in Antigua, which they bought by selling your body and you will find yourself very alone.

None of the men oggling you give a **** about you either, do not be fooled. Many’s the woman mistook lust for love. If they want you sexually that doesn’t mean they give a **** about you. All the more true when you unwittingly give the impression you don’t give much of a **** about yourself.
And when you employ people who give the impression they don’t give much of a **** about you either. No one who cares about you could support your being pimped.. and that includes you yourself.

Yes, I’m suggesting you don’t care for yourself. That has to change. You ought be protected as a precious young lady by anyone in your employ and anyone around you, including you. This is a dangerous world. We don’t encourage our daughters to walk around naked in it because it makes them prey for animals and less than animals, a distressing majority of whom work in the music industry and it’s associated media.

You are worth more than your body or your sexual appeal. The world of showbiz doesn’t see things that way, they like things to be seen the other way, whether they are magazines who want you on their cover, or whatever.. Don’t be under any illusions.. ALL of them want you because they’re making money off your youth and your beauty.. which they could not do except for the fact your youth makes you blind to the evils of show business. If you have an innocent heart you can’t recognise those who do not.

I repeat, you have enough talent that you don’t need to let the music business make a prostitute of you. You shouldn’t let them make a fool of you either. Don’t think for a moment that any of them give a flying **** about you. They’re there for the money.. we’re there for the music. It has always been that way and it will always be that way. The sooner a young lady gets to know that, the sooner she can be REALLY in control.

You also said in Rolling Stone that your look is based on mine. The look I chose, I chose on purpose at a time when my record company were encouraging me to do what you have done. I felt I would rather be judged on my talent and not my looks. I am happy that I made that choice, not least because I do not find myself on the proverbial rag heap now that I am almost 47 yrs of age.. which unfortunately many female artists who have based their image around their sexuality, end up on when they reach middle age.

Real empowerment of yourself as a woman would be to in future refuse to exploit your body or your sexuality in order for men to make money from you. I needn’t even ask the question.. I’ve been in the business long enough to know that men are making more money than you are from you getting naked. Its really not at all cool. And its sending dangerous signals to other young women. Please in future say no when you are asked to prostitute yourself. Your body is for you and your boyfriend. It isn’t for every spunk-spewing dirtbag on the net, or every greedy record company executive to buy his mistresses diamonds with.

As for the shedding of the Hannah Montana image.. whoever is telling you getting naked is the way to do that does absolutely NOT respect your talent, or you as a young lady. Your records are good enough for you not to need any shedding of Hannah Montana. She’s waaaaaaay gone by now.. Not because you got naked but because you make great records.

Whether we like it or not, us females in the industry are role models and as such we have to be extremely careful what messages we send to other women. The message you keep sending is that its somehow cool to be prostituted.. its so not cool Miley.. its dangerous. Women are to be valued for so much more than their sexuality. we aren’t merely objects of desire. I would be encouraging you to send healthier messages to your peers.. that they and you are worth more than what is currently going on in your career. Kindly fire any mother****er who hasn’t expressed alarm, because they don’t care about you.


Sinead O Connor's official website

[Shaun]

the woman who ripped up a photo of the Pope on live TV (SNL?) preaching about the wrong way to go about things? Hmm.

[King Gizzard]

yes not sure she should be the one giving out some sort of moral lesson here

[Lee.]

Good on her

[GypsyGoth]

Sinead makes some good points.

[Mrluvaluva]

But ripping up that photo of the pope was in an effort to try and highlight the fact that child abuse existed within the Roman Catholic church?

[Benjamin]

Originally Posted by Nathan

yes not sure she should be the one giving out some sort of moral lesson here

She's warning her of things she has probably go through or seen others go through.

[King Gizzard]

I dunno...I kinda think Miley is just having a fun time

[jackc1806]

Hilarious people can't see that this whole image of her is coming out while she's releasing new material... It's not at all a cleverly crafted move by a whole team of publicists and marketers to get free publicity

[King Gizzard]

and in a way isn't this just adding to the Miley Cyrus publicity

I prefer this Miley anyway

[Brother Leon]

Open Letter back to Sinead.

No one is reading your ****, never mind Miley. Let her do what she wants. She's making better music at least.

[Mrluvaluva]

I suppose as Miley is citing Sinead as a possible role model, then Sinead is acting in that capacity and offering her advice. It's up to Miley what she does with that advice. She's not just slagging her off.

[King Gizzard]

She probably thought Sinead would never respond to it/even know who she is and said it on whim Lol

[MTVN]

Bit ott

[Novo]

well said Sinead, time to bring back the 7 Things and Party in the USA miley. at least she had a style which suited those type of songs now it's just all gone horribly wrong for her

[Vicky.]

Originally Posted by Nathan

and in a way isn't this just adding to the Miley Cyrus publicity

I prefer this Miley anyway

I wonder why

Anyway, some good advice in there. I had to laugh at something I read the other day with Miley trying to make out her video was all about the pain of break ups and such and all sybolism..rather than just admit she was naked and writhing on a giant ball just to sell more and get attention

[Kizzy]

Sinead

[iRyan]

She makes some potentially convincing points yet at the same time comes across as both prudish and extremely bitter. Maybe Miley is being 'prostituted', but did you ever think maybe she isn't? That perhaps she, *gasp*, CHOOSES to portray herself this way? And in that case - let Miley be her. Her life is her journey. We discover ourselves through the choices we make. Miley is at a stage in her life where she is trying to discover who she is and she should be free to express herself while doing so. It's normal.

I find it hypocritical of Sinead to frame the music industry as misogynistic (though I don't totally disagree) yet her entire letter is basically slut-shaming. I literally rolled my eyes at the comment 'your body is for you and your boyfriend'. What a silly thing to say. Who is this woman to tell another woman what to use her body for? A woman has the right to represent herself however she pleases, and if Miley wishes to represent herself like that, then that's alright. She's just doing her.

I know Sinead is of good intentions, but the way in which she went about giving advice was not appropriate in my opinion. She's shaming her, not encouraging her.

[Kizzy]

She hasn't got a boyfriend anymore... Thats the whole point of the vid to portray her 'anguish' isn't it?

[Cherie]

Sinead makes some great points. Miley has gone OTT in trying to ditch her Disney Princess image and ended up a bit of a laughing stock in the process.

[Vanessa]

I don't like Miley Cirus. She tries too hard to be controversial.

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Vanessa

I don't like Miley Cirus. She tries too hard to be controversial.

Perfectly put.

[Kizzy]

She'll be saying P diddy's her friend next

[Niamh.]

She's spot on, Miley has just become ridiculous

[Ammi]

..maybe Sinead did mean it as ‘advise’ in a constructive way but it is only her opinion based on her own experiences and that doesn’t mean Miley shouldn’t do what she feels is right and for her career because no two situations are the same..it’s not really anything new for artists male and female in live performances and vids etc to give a visual performance of general sexiness as well..I remember when Kylie was considered ‘the girl next door’, an image she also successfully changed and she’s had a very long career and is still a great and sexy performer....so yeah, Sinead might be more than happy with her own choices and to let her ‘talent shine through’ but Miley isn’t her ...she obviously wants to shake off being ‘Billy’s daughter’/Hannah Montana etc and she’s doing that by ‘reinventing’ herself which is something that’s worked extremely well for people like Madonna and her 'controversy' hasn't done her any harm..who is to say she’s gone too far...Miley looks great/has talent and hopefully is enjoying herself...and she’s still showcasing her music very well...as Sinead said herself, Miley’s music talents aren’t detracted from because she still sees them...you know maybe Miley will end up in rehab/having problems with exhaustion or whatever but I doubt it’ll all be because of ‘exploitation’ but also having to read the constant criticisms of her looks/style/and everything she does so closely scrutinised and at such a young age..and for me that’s the first thing Sinead should have had empathy with as an ‘older and wiser’, rather than being concerned about her for getting naked in a music vid....as an apparent role model, she could have given her some much better ‘self-protection/preservation’ imo...Miley could have a music careee for a few short years or decades, who knows but for now she’s holding her own in a very competitive world....