Miley Cyrus and Kaitlynn Carter just made their first public appearance as a couple!
Ahead of her show-stopping performance at the MTV VMAs, the pop sensation was all smiles when she was spotted backstage with her new girlfriend.
In a short clip from the star-studded event, Miley and Kaitlynn looked loved up as the reality TV star was videoed rubbing Miley’s back and putting her hand on her shoulders.
WATCH: Kaitlynn and Miley cuddle and laugh together while backstage
Moments later, the singer— who said a few months back that there’s “no f—ing way” she’d perform at the show— walked on stage to sing her hit breakup anthem “Slide Away”. The performance, which was nothing short of incredible, marked her first public appearance since announcing she’d split from her husband of seven months, Liam Hemsworth.
No doubt one of her most emotional songs to date, Miley— who sported wet hair and a slim fitting black dress— shocked the crowd as she somehow managed to remain calm and collected during the sombre single.
Meanwhile, we were all crying!
WATCH HER HEARTBREAKING PERFORMANCE BELOW
Days after announcing her split from Liam, Miley dropped her new single. Although the three-and-a-half-minute ballad is about her estranged husband, a source close to the pop star claimed Miley wasn’t trying to throw him under the bus, rather share her side of the story.
“Her song was her way of telling her story without having to say anything at all,” a source told PEOPLE. “She isn’t trying to bash him, but she wants to be able to share what she’s been going through.”
Throughout the song, the 26-year-old alludes to her divorce, singing:
Once upon a time, it was made for us
Woke up one day, it had turned to dust
Baby, we were found, but now we’re lost
So it’s time to let it go”
Last week, Miley shut down claims infidelity spelled the end of their decade long relationship, revealing she ended their marriage when she realised it was “time to leave a previous life behind”. Her lyric, “So it’s time to let go” seems to suggest as much.
“I can accept that the life I’ve chosen means I must live completely open and transparent with my fans who I love, and the public, 100% of the time. What I cannot accept is being told I’m lying to cover up a crime I haven’t committed. I have nothing to hide,” said the singer, who recently returned to acting to star in Black Mirror.
She continued: “But the truth is, once Liam & I reconciled, I meant it, & I was committed. There are NO secrets to uncover here. I’ve learned from every experience in my life. I’m not perfect, I don’t want to be, it’s boring. I’ve grown up in front of you, but the bottom line is, I HAVE GROWN UP. I can admit to a lot of things but I refuse to admit that my marriage ended because of cheating. Liam and I have been together for a decade. I’ve said it before & it remains true, I love Liam and always will.”
Don’t want my house in the hills
Don’t want the whiskey and pills I don’t give up easily
But I don’t think I’m down
Miley’s reference to whisky and pills also adds weight to claims the couple parted ways due to Liam’s excessive partying habits, “drinking” and “drug use”.
The artwork accompanying “Slide away”— which features a collection of whisky bottles and pills floating in the water— also seems to imply these substances played a part in the demise of their decade long relationship.
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