We can’t stop … looking at photos of Miley Cyrus rocking a bikini. She wears swimsuits better than pretty much everyone on our feed and is never afraid to flaunt her gorgeous curves. Whether the pop star shares one of her impromptu photo shoots on Instagram or wears a bikini top on the red carpet — we can’t get enough of Miley’s beachy vibe. The former Disney kid has had an insane style evolution in the past few decades, including her time as Hannah Montana, but we think she’s looking better than ever these days.
Though the Tennessee native always seemed confident in her killer bikini bod, she’s had rough patches with her self-esteem just like the rest of us.
Miley and fellow pop star Demi Lovato spoke about their struggles with body image during an Instagram Live broadcast on March 17. The “Wrecking Ball” singer shared she was particularly traumatized by the reaction to her 2013 MTV Video Music Awards looks.
“I went through two to three years when I wouldn’t wear shorts or skirts on stage,” she revealed. “After the VMAs, I wore a cute bodysuit and everyone started comparing me to this turkey … I felt so bad about myself.”
The Black Mirror star did the infamous performance when she was 21, “just starting to understand [herself] as an independent person.” She noted it was “so hurtful” to be body-shamed and that it “affected” her in her personal life. “Not wearing shorts to the beach … what was so hard about it was my brand has always been so unapologetically myself and being confident,” Miley said. “I felt like having this persona was actually kind of fraud that … I wasn’t wearing shorts and even when I wore bodysuits, I wore four f—king pairs of tights under.”
The actress explained the way the trolling and body-shaming made her feel was the catalyst for starting her foundation, Happy Hippie. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to “rallying young people to fight injustice facing homeless youth, LGBTQ youth and other vulnerable populations.”
Clearly, the “We Can’t Stop” singer has regained her confidence in a big way since 2013. Scroll through the gallery to see all of Miley’s best bikini moments!