I would not consider myself a Miley Cyrus fan. In fact, if you asked me to list songs from her latest album, Bangerz, I would probably struggle to come up with more than two or three.
Aside from the overplayed hits that I hear consistently on the radio, the only Miley Cyrus songs you will hear me singing are the Hannah Montana classics featured on my “throwback” Pandora play-list.
However, when a friend called me offering up two tickets to Cyrus’ show at the Barclays Center, I jumped at the opportunity to finally experience the 2.0 version of everyone’s favorite childhood Disney star.
Walking into the concert I made the mistake of uttering the name “Hannah Montana” and those close to me whipped around with stares of disgust and dismay. Feeling rather misplaced, I made the executive decision to terminate the Disney jokes for the night and accepted that Cyrus’ cowgirl stage had transformed into an era of inflatable bananas and high hair-styled buns.
The concert—set to start at 7:30—opened with a two opening acts. First, Icona Pop reminded the sold-out stadium how overplayed their one-hit-wonder “I Love It” is and later, Sky Ferreira performed a selection of original songs while the audience was busy Googling: “Who is Sky Ferreira?”
After two hours of mostly sub par introduction, Cyrus most certainly came in like a wrecking ball. Entering the stage via a massive “tongue slide” (said to mimic her infamous pose), the pop icon instantly brought the Barclays Center energy level from a two to a ten.
Opening with a marijuana leaf leotard, Miley did not waste any time to break out her most obscene behavior. The crowd, which was made up of mostly teenage girls and traumatized parents who were forced to accompany them, was in awe of Cyrus and her illicit verbal and body language.
Making up for the dull opening acts, Cyrus, with the help of colorful backup dancing bears, a gigantic bird puppet, and some twerking midgets, had no problem maintaining the attention of her audience. Some fans lost their focus in order to take Instagram selfies.
Cyrus’s vocal skills were so crisp and pristine that I asked my friend if there was any chance that she may have been lip-syncing. Instantly, I received the same crazy-eyed glare as I did when I walked in, and was reminded that “she is just a natural.” Despite her insanity, Cyrus’ live voice is extremely pleasant and impressive, considering the chaos which circuits each of her songs.
Cyrus began to break down during her cover of Bob Dylan’s “You’re Going to Make Me Lonesome When You Go.” The song (which could barely be sung along to by anyone under the age of 40) was a tribute to her recently deceased dog, Floyd. Floyd’s death was evident throughout the entire concert as Cyrus stressed that her fans were the biggest support in helping her cope with the loss. Fans sang along as she added a unique flare to additional covers such as Lana Del Ray’s “Summertime Sadness,” Coldplay’s “The Scientist,” and Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”
Although I was unfamiliar with much of her new album, the show remained wildly entertaining. The culmination of props like the flying hot dog during “Someone Else,” a massive inflatable Floyd during “I Can’t Be Tamed,” and a moving car that Cyrus danced on alongside a life-size bobble head of Big Sean during “Love Money Party” made for a highly unpredictable yet amusing Saturday night.
Just as fans were ready to pile out of Brooklyn, Cyrus returned with an encore. She finished the show off with the undeniable crowd pleasers “We Can’t Stop,” “Wrecking Ball,” and the all time favorite “Party in the USA.”