Miley Cyrus stripped down to her underwear for the music video of her new single "Bass Persuades," released on Thursday evening ahead of her upcoming album of the same name.
The 33-year-old singer-songwriter danced through a dimly lit dive bar before taking to the streets with a group of dancers, moving under moonlight and neon lights. The lyrics urge younger fans to put down their phones and get on the dance floor, with Cyrus declaring "the kids don't want to dance" and telling listeners to "surrender to the night." The 80s-inspired track laments how people have become "glued" to their screens and cut off from life beyond them.
The video opens with Cyrus in a black bralette and matching high-waisted slacks, accessorized with a leather paper boy cap and gloves. She later sheds the accessories and trousers for high-waisted micro shorts, sheer tights and pumps, dancing in an empty room against a plain background alongside shirtless backup dancers.
Elsewhere in the clip she throws a leather jacket over the lingerie-inspired look while strutting down a busy street, and rides in a convertible with the wind in her hair. In one sequence she puts her hands on two of her dancers and allows one of them to grab her chest.
New look and new album
For the video, Cyrus swapped her signature brunette hair for a bright blonde style with wispy bangs reminiscent of her Hannah Montana days, paired with dark, sultry makeup. Throughout the video she and her dancers perform tightly choreographed routines to the uptempo track, frequently keeping their hands on one another.
Cyrus revealed the title of her tenth studio album, also called "Bass Persuades," on Tuesday, September 1. "Music takes hold of us. We feel it, sing it, sometimes dance to it, let it out and carry on," she wrote on Instagram. "It is powerful, vulnerable, sweet and strong. Heart full, heartache, every part of life in between. That's what the title means to me." She added, "Thank you for being a part of making my wildest dreams come true. I sincerely hope you love this album," signing off simply as "Miley."
Dropping her surname
Alongside the video and album announcement, Cyrus rebranded her pop star persona, dropping her surname to go by just "Miley" and capitalizing all the letters of her first name professionally.
Her father, Billy Ray Cyrus, addressed the change in a lengthy Instagram post on Thursday, sharing a photo of Miley and her 32-year-old brother Braison Cyrus, both of whom he shares with his ex-wife Tish Cyrus. "Family means more than ever now. I always called my little girl Miley. Just.. Miley. Just like I always called my little boy Braison," he wrote, adding that he had told his daughter the day before that he felt good about her going with her first name. He referenced Dolly Parton and Cher, and later Elvis and Prince, calling the shift to a single name "a natural progression for an iconic superstar legend. And the legend continues! Looking forward to the new album." The post came after the father and daughter reconciled following a brief estrangement amid an ongoing family feud between Billy Ray Cyrus and some of Miley's siblings.
Billy Ray Cyrus's own name change
In the same caption, Billy Ray Cyrus noted that he too once went by a single name, CYRUS, before his 1992 hit "Achy Breaky Heart" came out, when his T-shirts read "CYRUS SOME GAVE ALL" alongside an image of a prisoner of war/missing in action flag and the words "You are not forgotten." He joked that he might have had greater success "if only Mercury/Polygram would have just not insisted on the 'Billy Ray' part and just let me be CYRUS."
Tribute to Dolly Parton
The video's release follows Cyrus's promise to write a song in honor of her late godmother, Dolly Parton, after paying tribute to the music legend following her death last week.
Album and tour dates
"Bass Persuades" is set for release on September 18. The following month, Cyrus will perform two shows at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on October 16 and October 18 with special guest MODEL/ACTRIZ. The concerts mark her return to the stage since her last major performance, at the Corona Capital music festival in Mexico City in 2022.
