Bangerz
Bangerz is the fourth studio album by the American singer Miley Cyrus. It was released on September 30, 2013. It was her first body of original work since leaving Hollywood Records after the release of her third studio album Can't Be Tamed and her signing to RCA in early 2013. Cyrus began to work on the album, and she decided against prioritizing her acting career as originally stated, in 2012. Primarily a pop and R&B record with lyrical themes that revolve largely around romance, Bangerz is a shift in both genre and tone from her previous work, which she began to feel "disconnected" from. Pop singer Britney Spears and rappers Big Sean, French Montana, Future, Ludacris, and Nelly are featured on the record.
Bangerz received generally positive reviews from music critics, who were divided on Cyrus' provocative image but praised its production and originality. It became Cyrus' fifth number-one album on the US Billboard 200, and it debuted with the third-highest opening week for a female artist in 2013. The album has since been certified triple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. It was also nominated for the Best Pop Vocal Album at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, which marked Cyrus' first career Grammy nomination.
The album was supported by the singles "We Can't Stop", "Wrecking Ball", and "Adore You". "We Can't Stop" peaked at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, and "Wrecking Ball" became Cyrus' first number-one single in the United States. Both singles' music videos became the fastest videos to reach 100 million views on Vevo, and the latter won the award for Video of the Year at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards. Cyrus further promoted the album with the Bangerz Tour in 2014.
Bangerz and its promotional efforts are lauded as a turning point in Cyrus' career, in which her public image successfully evolved from being a child star who was synonymous with her former television series Hannah Montana, to being a musical artist in her own right. Cyrus' controversial and sexually charged behavior during this time period resulted in various defining moments in pop culture, including her polarizing performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards, and the release of the controversial music video for the single "Wrecking Ball".
Background and production
In 2010, Cyrus announced plans to focus on her film career, effectively putting her musical endeavors on a hiatus. In 2012, she appeared in the films LOL and So Undercover. She was also confirmed as a primary voice actress in the feature film Hotel Transylvania, but was fired from the project due to a scandal involving her licking a suggestive cake. This fallout ended up serving her well to coordinate a musical comeback. In January 2013, Cyrus signed a recording contract with RCA Records. In March, she confirmed that her fourth studio album would be released by the end of 2013. Cyrus stated that she "started over" as an artist after terminating the services of her previous professional connections, who she felt "would have scared" by her evolving public image. In a later interview, she elaborated that she recognizes Bangerz to be her official debut record, deprecating her earlier projects released during the production of Hannah Montana. While recording the then-untitled album, Cyrus intended to produce a "very adult and sexy and believable" final product, and was "having fun making music the first time in her career." She said the album was influenced by Motown Sound. Musical acts which inspired the album included OneRepublic and Timbaland. According to Cyrus, Bangerz cost "a couple million" dollars to produce.She described the music as "dirty south hip-hop" and combining the genres of hip-hop and country, which she felt was a "good hybrid". To achieve this sound, Cyrus worked with various hip hop producers including Mike Will Made It, Mac Miller, Pharrell Williams, and Tyler, the Creator in cities including Atlanta, Georgia. They helped her to incorporate hip hop music elements into the project, which Cyrus acknowledged resulted in a "really different sound". Cyrus further commented that her project would "shut everyone up", and later compared the record to Bad by Michael Jackson, in that "people still are listening to because it's so fucking dope" and " people to listen to album like that." She also expressed her desire to "set a new standard for pop music". Producer Sean Garrett called the record "fun exciting", and stated that a collaboration that Cyrus recorded with Britney Spears would appear on the final track listing. Mike Will Made It explained that the title for the album was decided upon after realizing that "whole album was bangers".
Release and artwork
On August 6, 2013, after reaching 13 million followers on Twitter, Cyrus tweeted that the record would be titled Bangerz. Its cover sleeve and images were shot by British photographer Tyrone Lebon; several unused pictures from the photo shoot surfaced online on June 5, 2014. On August 24, 2013, Cyrus unveiled the album artworks for the standard and deluxe versions of the album; both depict a blonde Cyrus wearing a short black coat with the title "Bangerz" stylized in fluorescent neon lighting in front of palm trees. It was described as being reminiscent of the 1980s television series Miami Vice and an unexpected choice given her recent influence by hip hop culture. Later on August 25, Bangerz was made available for pre-order through the iTunes Store. She later confirmed that it would be released on October 4, 2013, in the United States. After her music video for the track "Wrecking Ball" broke the Vevo record for the most views in the first twenty-four hours of its release, Cyrus revealed the track listing for Bangerz through Twitter on September 10.On September 18, 2013, Cyrus unveiled four additional covers for the physical version of the deluxe record, which were sporadically distributed across international retailers and voted on by fans to determine the official cover to be printed for future pressings. Two of the covers display Cyrus dressed in alternate outfits, one with a black jacket and another with a white bra and checkered black pants. The third version depicts a close-up of Cyrus surrounded by roses, while the fourth version highlights a topless Cyrus covering her chest. The topless cover is featured for an online-exclusive edition of the record and is also the primary visual for the vinyl pressings, released on November 26 through Cyrus' online store. It was compared to her music video for "Wrecking Ball", which also showcased an unclothed Cyrus, while the others were deemed conservative by comparison. A page of stickers is packaged with the deluxe version of the album. On October 15, it was announced through Cyrus' Facebook profile that the original deluxe artwork would remain the official cover. The record is additionally marked with the Parental Advisory label, affixed by the Recording Industry Association of America to identify explicit content. On September 29, 30-second snippets of each track on Bangerz were made available through AllMusic. The following day, the full record was made available for streaming through the iTunes Store and iTunes Radio. On April 22, 2017, the album was rereleased on vinyl for Record Store Day. A 10th anniversary edition was released on September 29, 2023. Two editions were made available, one featuring two black LPs and the other one two seaglass colored LPs, both featuring '23' as a bonus track.
Composition
Music and lyrics
Bangerz is primarily a pop, R&B, and trap-pop record, which also integrates elements of hip-hop, synth-pop and country music. During an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on October 10, host Ellen DeGeneres asked Cyrus if the record was inspired by her relationship with Liam Hemsworth, to which she replied "the whole album is a story of that and I think it says that starting with "Adore You" and ending with "Someone Else"..... I think I knew more intuitively where my life was going than I actually thought I did at the time."Songs and lyrical content
The record opens with "Adore You", a pop and R&B ballad, which lyrically addresses a lover through lyrics including "We were meant to be/In holy matrimony". Nick Catucci from Entertainment Weekly opined that the track allowed Cyrus to showcase her vocal abilities. "We Can't Stop" is a midtempo pop, and R&B with influences from EDM and hip hop song that lyrically discusses the events of a house party. Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times calling the song "the calmest, most clear-eyed rebel yell since Janet Jackson's 'Control'." Catucci described "SMS " as a "merry rap-off" with pop singer Britney Spears, who appears as a guest vocalist in the second verse. "4x4" features hip hop recording artist Nelly, and lyrically discusses the story of a "female rebel" looking to find bail for her romantic partner. Country music elements are present throughout the song. "My Darlin'" features Future; Cyrus' vocal abilities were complimented, though were deemed to be overpowered by a "sea of blinking synths and unthawed crooning". "Wrecking Ball" is a synthpop ballad speaking of a failed relationship.The seventh track "Love Money Party" features Big Sean, and incorporates a "grimy, haunted-house beat". Jason Lipshutz from Billboard noted that Cyrus appeared more comfortable with rapping in the recording, compared to an earlier performance on the Mike Will Made It single "23". "#GetItRight" is a "stylish breeze" that sees the inclusion of "whistling and a chopped guitar lick". It was described as being reminiscent of "Twisted" by Usher and "Kickin' In" by Adam Lambert, all three of which were produced by Pharrell Williams. Cyrus stated that "Drive" was inspired by "needing to leave someone but not really wanting to completely cut yourself off from the relationship." The track was described as "a sad-Kanye-esque track" and her comments were assumed to reference her engagement to Hemsworth by the media. The tenth track "FU" features French Montana, and according to Catucci, blends "starry Adele-style sass and a French Montana verse into expertly inlaid dubstep wub-wubs". He went on to describe "Do My Thang" as a "ripping dance track", while Lipshutz recognized influences from "gooey synthesizers and snapping percussion". "Maybe You're Right" incorporates drum instrumentation with "hints of gospel influence", and was also questioned to be addressing Hemsworth. The thirteenth and final track "Someone Else" combines hip hop and synthpop styles, and lyrically discusses Cyrus' evolving public image.