Did Miley Cyrus just go mononymous? Pop star’s name change and album signal a new era
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- Pop star Miley Cyrus unveiled her latest album ‘Bass Persuades’ after she seemingly dropped her last name on social media.
- Miley alluded to a period of change last week, as she bid farewell to godmother Dolly Parton.
The artist formerly known as Miley Cyrus appears to have changed her name, or just shortened it, to herald a new professional chapter.
The Grammy-winning “Flowers” hitmaker on Tuesday revealed that her 10th studio album is officially on its way. “Bass Persuades” will drop Sept. 18, she announced on social media. A day before the album announcement, the singer dropped her last name on all of her socials, going mononymous à la Cher, Madonna, Prince, Beyoncé, you get the picture. She paired the apparent name change announcement with a new profile shot that features her in red lighting wearing a massive Saint Laurent faux fur coat. It was giving drama, glamour — but not exactly new album cover.
Miley’s album announcement on Instagram included the official album art — a photo of her with dark makeup and a white rose covering her mouth — and a blurb about the significance of “Bass Persuades.”
“Music takes hold of us. We feel it, sing it, sometimes dance to it, let it out and carry on,” she wrote in her caption. “It is powerful, vulnerable, sweet and strong. Heart full, heartache, every part of life in between. That’s what the title means to me.”
Miley Cyrus remembers Dolly Parton, her godmother, after the beloved country music star and humanitarian died at age 80 on Tuesday. ‘I have an angel by my side,’ she writes.
Earlier this year, the megastar told Wonderland magazine that the album in the works is a love story. “But love stories are never one-dimensional. They’re always layered,” she said. “There is definitely a romantic thread weaving through it because, like all my records, it’s a reflection of where I am in my life. But this one feels especially meaningful because this feeling has stayed with me through multiple eras.”
In December, Miley and her rocker boyfriend of more than four years, Maxx Morando, announced they were engaged. She told Wonderland that a “peaceful kind of love” had become a theme across her last three records. “Not just the love I share with someone else,” she said, but also the love she’s embraced for herself.
“That’s probably been the biggest evolution. Once your relationship with yourself changes, every relationship around you changes too. I think this record celebrates both of those equally.”
Miley alluded to a period of change last week, as she bid farewell to godmother Dolly Parton in a heartfelt tribute shared after the pop culture icon’s death. On Instagram, Miley said one of the final conversations she has with Parton, who died at age 80, “was about music and metamorphosis.”
And on Sunday, a red poster featuring the pop star’s face, official website address and an all-caps MILEY wrapped the print edition of the Los Angeles Times.
A month after the release of “Bass Persaudes,” Miley will perform two concerts at the Hollywood Bowl on Oct. 16 and 18. Ticket presale for those concerts begins Sept. 8.
