Bailey Sergott
When I was a little girl my ultimate favorite TV show was Hannah Montana. It starred Miley Cyrus living a double life both as a teen pop star and a normal teenager. When Miley wore a blonde wig she would become Hannah Montana, the pop star and when she wasn’t wearing her wig she would be known as Miley Cyrus. I would sit on my couch at eight years old for as long as I could and watch Hannah Montana. The show is what made me fall in love with the pop star. I looked up to Hannah Montana my entire childhood so when she decided to kill off Hannah Montana I didn’t know how to feel. That was until I did some research and found out that Miley Cyrus killing off Hannah Montana was just a public relations stunt to rebrand Miley Cyrus into a new artist.
Miley Cyrus Makes a Change
Miley Cyrus had been done with Hannah Montana for a couple years before she came out with a completely new look. Miley cut off her long hair and began performing much differently than in the past. In 2013 she performed at the MTV Video Music Awards and it was very clear she was departing from her old ways as Hannah Montana. I remember watching the performance and thinking that Miley Cyrus was going crazy. Her performance got so much attention because of how different it was from what everyone was used to. Miley sang both “Wrecking Ball” and “Blurred Lines” with Robin Thicke as she danced provocatively on him. This was so different from anything she had done that it was very shocking to everyone who viewed her as a squeaky clean pop star.
Miley’s Plan
On the same day as Miley’s performance she released her new single “Wrecking Ball.” This was a very smart move because it was the same day that she performed it live and also gave a performance that kept everyone talking. What a lot of her fans didn’t realize until later was that Miley was doing everything on purpose. Miley released a mini movie called The Movement where she explained that all the crazy shows she was putting on was to rebrand her image into what she truly wanted to be. As a big Miley fan, this made me love her even more because it was a great move by her public relations team. She used bold performances and provocative music videos to get everyone's attention on her while she released her new album and it worked.
Final Thoughts
There are so many different public relations tactics out there that not everyone knows when they are being used. In Miley’s case many of her fans didn’t realize what she was doing and why she was doing it until later. But, for Miley she successfully rebranded her image in about a year. She went from being a squeaky clean pop star to an artist that she felt she needed to be. Not only did she change brands but she did so extremely successfully. If you’re looking for a successful public relations plan, check out Miley Cyrus.
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