Miley Says The Pressure Of Touring “Isn’t Healthy For Her”

This year’s concert roster has been one for the books. From Beyoncé’s chrome-delighted Renaissance to Taylor Swift’s massive Eras tour, many artists across the globe are making stadiums their second home this summer. However, it appears Miley Cyrus will enjoy her Endless Summer Vacation away from the stage this season. Ever since Cyrus dropped her eighth studio album in March, she’s been vocal about not wanting to hit the road anytime soon. She recently doubled down on that stance again, further offering an important insight many fans might not consider when seeing their faves on tour.

On Aug. 27, Cyrus shared her thoughts on her Used To Be Young TikTok series. She began the video by explaining that traveling as a competitive cheerleader “set her up” for touring. “The show or competition may only be a day, and that’s what people don’t really understand about touring,” she said. “The show is only 90 minutes, but [as an artist] that’s your life.”

The “River” singer then stated if an artist is performing “at a certain level of intensity and excellence,” then they deserve the same amount of “recovery and rest.” To Cyrus, acing that sort of energy for a show comes with being in a certain mindset. And sometimes, that can be exhausting. “There’s a level of ego that I feel gets overused when I’m on tour. I think when you’re training your ego every single night to be active, that’s the hardest switch for me to turn off,” she said.

She then shined a light on being a performer, and how being reduced to just that title “isn’t healthy for her.” “Having — every day — the relationship between you and other humans being subject and observer isn’t healthy for me, because it erases my humanity and my connection. Without my humanity, my connection, I can’t be a songwriter, which is my priority,” Cyrus said.

This source of raw honesty glimmered on “Used To Be Young,” her recently released track about mourning her early wild days. She’s evolved to a more grounded space in her life, and that growth can be seen in her prioritizing her sanity over jumping to stage another large-scale tour.

This isn’t the first time Cyrus has shared her desire to take a step back from live shows. She first shared that sentiment in a May 18 profile with British Vogue. “After the last [headline arena] show I did [in 2014], I kind of looked at [touring] as more of a question,” she said at the time. “And I can’t. Not only ‘can’t,’ because can’t is your capability, but my desire. Do I want to live my life for anyone else’s pleasure or fulfillment other than my own?”

At the time, her fans were mixed on her decision: Many understood her stance, while some were disappointed and felt as though the singer was losing her connection to her fanbase. On May 24, six days after her Vogue interview, she revealed another reason why she’s not interested in touring.

“I simply don’t want to get ready in a locker room, which is the reality of life on the road,” she said, adding this era’s fashion involves archival looks that wouldn’t “travel well” between shows. “I just don’t want to sleep on a moving bus. It isn’t what’s best for me right NOW, & if you’ve been following my career you know that I always change and the way I feel about that could too.”

It seems Cyrus’ stance on this is unwavering. However, that doesn’t mean fans can’t see her perform. As part of her “Use To Be Young” era, the singer performed several Endless Summer Vacation tracks in a live backyard session.