Miley Cyrus Says Her "Confident" Persona Was a Fraud

If you're looking for something to occupy yourself in these tough times, Miley Cyrus has a brand-new IGTV series, Bright Minded: Live With Miley, and she's leaning deep, deep into her Disney Channel past for material. This week, she invited fellow Disney alumnae Demi Lovato for a heart-to-heart and the two discussed how hard it was to come to terms with their bodies as they grew up in the spotlight.

Cyrus explained that it all came to a head after her MTV Video Music Awards performance, when online trolls compared her body to a turkey and clips from the show turned into viral memes.

"I didn't wear a bikini for two years [after that]," Cyrus told Lovato. "Memes can be so funny but also so hurtful. That was such a wake-up call to me for wanting to use my platform for a bigger purpose."

She went on to explain that while she was projecting an image of confidence, she didn't really feel that way. She was actually hiding her body and felt very, very insecure through it all. It wasn't until she was older that she accepted herself.

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"I wouldn't wear shorts. I wouldn't wear skirts on stage [...] I was probably 21 and just starting to understand myself as an independent person. What was so hard about it is that my brand has always been about being so unapologetically myself," she continued. "I felt like having this persona, being the most confident girl on the planet, was actually kind of a fraud. I wasn't wearing bathing suits or shorts, and when I was wearing my little leotards and things, I had on fucking four pairs of tights because I was so insecure."

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Lovato added that right now, when most people are at home and surrounded by mirrors and have plenty of time with their thoughts, it's important to be gentle with yourself. She reiterated Cyrus's sentiment, saying that while other people's ideas may be tough, our own thoughts can be tougher.

"I think it's so important for anybody that has dealt with body image [issues] that right now when we're home with our mirrors and things like that, it's so important to not get consumed in negative self talk," Lovato responded. "This goes for everybody. We're confined into these spaces, with the same mirrors, the same negative thoughts. It's important not to beat ourselves up over getting nervous or not eating perfectly or working out perfectly. These are different, very scary times. We've never been through this. It's OK, be gentle with yourself as much as possible."