Miley Cyrus is opening up about her poor body image. The "Wrecking Ball" singer got candid in an Instagram Live chat with Demi Lovato on Tuesday, explaining that she refused to wear a bikini after her infamous performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.
At the time, Cyrus drew controversy when she appeared on stage dressed in a beige bikini and danced provocatively with Robin Thicke, but the body shaming that ensued left Cyrus feeling insecure.
"I basically went through two or three years where I wouldn't wear shorts. I stopped wearing skirts on stage, all this s*** because after the VMAs and I had on my cute little nude bodysuit, everyone started comparing me to a turkey and putting a turkey in my outfit," Cyrus said, according toPeople. "I was just so skinny and so pasty and they kept putting me next to this turkey, and I was feeling so bad on myself that I did not wear a bikini for like two years."
The former Disney Channel star said those passing the insensitive remarks did not stop to think about how it might impact her self-worth.
"It was just really, really hurtful to be so body-shamed like that. And it really affected me in my personal life," she continued.
"I felt like having this persona of being the most confident girl on the planet was actually kind of fraud because I was so insecure on the inside that in my personal life I wasn't even wearing bathing suits and shorts," she said. "And when I was wearing like my little leotards and things, I had on f****** four pairs of tights because I was so insecure."
The Instagram Live chat formed part of Cyrus' new afternoon talk show "Bright Minded: Live with Miley," which airs this week. During the discussion, Lovato opened up about how she also struggled with body image issues and hoped that being vocal could help others facing similar struggles.
"I kind of made a vow to myself that when I get older I just wanna represent what I didn't have, and I want to be that for somebody," Lovato said. "I've talked about my struggles with food and stuff. And yeah, I'm glad that I did because it's brought me and my fans closer. I feel like, helped young people learn to accept their bodies when it starts to change."