Miley Cyrus is forging her own path on her latest single, “Midnight Sky.”
The lead single from her upcoming album, “Midnight Sky” is a disco-pop track that feels like a clash between Madonna and Stevie Nicks. In it, Miley tells a former partner she prefers to be on her own, making the mistakes on her own terms.
Miley is done with her ex (“Lotta years went by with my hands tied up in your ropes/Forever and ever, no more”) and is ready to embark on her own journey (“The midnight sky is the road I’m takin’/Head high up in the clouds”).
She tells him that she now prefers her independent lifestyle: “I was born to run, I don’t belong to anyone, oh no/I don’t need to be loved by you/Fire in my lungs, can’t bite the devil on my tongue.”
That involves the freedom to be with other women (“See my lips on her mouth, everybody’s talkin’ now, baby”), to be promiscuous (“She got her hair pulled back ‘cause the sweat’s drippin’ off of her face/See his hands ‘round my waist, thought you’d never be replaced”) and to do whatever she pleases (“Said, ‘It ain’t so bad if I wanna make a couple mistakes’”).
In an interview with Zach Sang, Miley said of her latest song that it’s a reflection of her own personal realizations, paired with a desire to live in her personally constructed world.
She says, “It’s really just a reflection of everyone kind of having this personal kind of woke moment, I feel like a lot of us are waking up. And you know, the midnight sky, I think is kind of a road that feels like it could be nice to take with our head up in the clouds.”
But this song doesn’t really hit a listener’s ears as a fantasy. In fact, it quite clearly sounds like a very personal message to Miley’s ex-husband, Liam Hemsworth. A message that says Miley isn’t sorry for what she’s done, such as kissing a woman or getting close to another man.
And this message is furthered in her video as she sports a Channel leotard with ripped fishnet stockings and an exposed rear and, elsewhere, lays topless on colored bubblegum while covering her breasts with her hands.
This track may have been a liberating experience for Miley. But it’s not the kind of message about “freedom” that parents will want their kids listening to and imitating.
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
