By Chesney Hearst, Senior Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – American pop superstar Miley Cyrus will play live at Rio de Janeiro’s Praça da Apoteose, the scene of the Sambódromo, on Sunday, September 28th as part of her ongoing Bangerz Tour 2014. Cryus will play just two shows in Brazil during The Bangerz Tour 2014; Saõ Paulo on September 26th and then Rio on the 28th.
The tour, Cyrus’ fourth, began on February 14th earlier this year in Vancouver, Canada and is in support of the performer’s fourth studio album entitled, Bangerz. Known for her stint as Disney’s Hannah Montana, her hits songs including “Party in the U.S.A.“, “Wrecking Ball“, and “We Can’t Stop“, her controversial appearances, and her colorful and hyper sexualized live performances, the Miley Cryus show in Rio promises to entertain both fans and newcomers alike on Sunday.
“Miley sounds incredible live and I would recommend the concert to anyone who listens to that type of music,” American fan Melissa Ackaway told The Rio Times. Ackaway saw Cyrus live at the Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa, Florida on December 18th of last year before the Bangerz Tour began but after the release of Bangerz. “I think the best part was the costumes as they were so crazy and unusual!”
Born in 1992 to country singer and actor Billy Ray Cyrus, famous for his single “Achy Breaky Heart”, Miley Cyrus was raised in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. She began her career as an actress and at an early age she was cast in smaller television series roles.
It was in 2006 that Cyrus won the lead role in the Disney Channel children’s television series, Hannah Montana, a show about a young girl who lead a double life as a normal teenager in school and also as a teen popstar. The role proved to be a massive success and rocketed Cyrus to stardom.
When the second season of the show’s soundtrack entitled, Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus, was released in mid-2007, it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 charts. A double album, with the second disc consisting of work by Cyrus, it was also considered to be Cryus’s first solo album.
In 2008, Cyrus released her second album, Breakout. The album’s first single, “Party in the U.S.A.”, shot to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. After a third and fourth season of Hannah Montana, and the feature film “Hannah Montana: The Movie”, Cyrus appeared in the film, “The Last Song”, co-written by Nicholas Sparks. Following that and the end of Hannah Montana, Cyrus began to focus more on her acting, appearing in smaller films, often with limited releases.
Cyrus then released her third studio album, Can’t Be Tamed in 2010 but it was the release of Bangerz in 2013 that truly marked a major turning point in Cryus’s career. While she had been transitioning for years into adulthood and into a different kind of performer, with the release of Bangerz it was clear she had arrived at a new level.
“I used to watch Hannah Montana when I was younger and I loved it,” said Ackaway, adding “I personally think her having such a dramatic transformation was smart on her part. She was slowly fading away and that brought her straight to the spotlight. I actually prefer the music though now.”
Others appeared to like it as well. Upon its release Bangerz , reached the number one position on the Billboard 200 and the second single for the album, “Wrecking Ball”, broke a Vevo record becoming the fastest video to reach one hundred million views.
Cyrus also began to make and re-make her image through performances, including two controversial MTV Video Music Awards(VMAs) appearances. She first received massive backlash there after twerking with Robin Thicke in 2013. Then earlier this year, she evoked a different response by having a 22-year-old homeless man, accept the award for Video of the Year for “Wrecking Ball” on her behalf. That and her push towards advocacy for homeless teens, increased her Facebook following by a whooping 159 percent.
Cryus is, at the moment, one star that many cannot help but to watch, if only to see what she might do next.
Who: Miley Cyrus
When: Sunday, September 28th, 8:30 PM
Where: Praça da Apoteose, Rua Aurélio Valporto 115, Mal. Hermes, Centro, RJ
Entrance: R$280-R$650