Miley Cyrus’s Bangerz era was quite something to behold. While promoting her 2013 album, she came in like a wrecking ball, was literally naked riding a wrecking ball, twerked on Robin Thicke with a foam finger in her right hand and a mic in her left, and triggered blackfishing criticisms (for which she later apologized). Now, a little over a decade after that album became the soundtrack of every vaguely rebellious teen’s hotboxing sesh, she’s returning with a track from the Bangerz vault. Cyrus released “Doctor (Work It Out),†a collaboration with Pharrell, on March 1, complete with a minimal video that contains no signs of Bangerz-era attempted debauchery. Apparently, you can take a song out of 2013, and take the 2013 out of the song. In the visuals, we see Cyrus in a glittering minidress dancing like Wednesday Addams in a Vegas revue, her voluminous hair moving in the wind like a Pantene commercial. As for the music, it contains Pharrell’s typical four-count intro and groovy sound, while Cyrus goes on about being somebody’s medical professional. “Let me work you out,†she sings.
“Doctor†was first teased at Pharrell’s Louis Vuitton Men’s Fall-Winter 2024 show in January, though fans first heard an unedited version when it leaked back in 2017. With Cyrus moving like this, can we expect a new version of Bangerz, complete with old throwaways from the vault? It’s worked for other artists.