For the second straight year, pop star and pop culture icon Miley Cyrus brought her love of performing, partying and A+ duets to NBC for Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party, which capped off the year in ways that truly sent some fans into orbit. The December 31 special, which was arguably the best of the 2022-2023 New Year’s programming, thankfully avoided the wardrobe malfunction that shook up last year’s airing, and entertained the masses with special appearances from Nashville legend Dolly Parton, pop star Fletcher, a certain wrecking ball, and much more.
Miley Cyrus’ fans, as was expected, ate up every single second of the special from start to finish, and have been singing the entertainer’s praises on social media before, during, and after the telecast’s performances took place. Let’s quickly run through a line of Miley-hyping posts, starting with one of the highest forms of praise to be found. (Though it definitely wasn’t alone in its superlative lauding.)
This Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton medley is one of the greatest performances of all time. 😭 pic.twitter.com/YEG3Ytwjy8January 1, 2023
Dolly Parton and Miley Cyrus didn’t just bring one song to life for NBC’s New Year’s special, but rather a handful of huge hits, albeit in medley form. The pair jammed to “Wrecking Ball” — more on that in a sec — “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene,” and Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll.” And as many viewers would probably agree, it’s never not amazing to see two generations of icons covering each other’s tracks.
Dolly Parton is a national treasure and hearing her sing “Wrecking Ball” with Miley was nothing short of breathtaking. pic.twitter.com/qwyRHR4qL8January 1, 2023
Now that we’ve brought up one of Miley Cyrus’ most iconic visuals via all things related to wrecking balls (such as giant disco balls), it seems like the best time to give the Hannah Montana vet a slowly ascending standing ovation for the New Year’s special’s low-key callback to her infamous performance at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards, by way of using the microphone stand for a bit of pole dancing.
We know it’s going to be a good era when Miley Cyrus recreates her iconic moments pic.twitter.com/OduhJwZhI9January 1, 2023
The moment was noticed and celebrated by many, and this fan summed up a lot of people’s thoughts by speaking to the ease in which it came up without making a whole lot of fanfare about it. (I wouldn’t have balked at seeing her foam finger making a reappearance, though.)
Pretty Miley Cyrus is one of the few artists who can reference herself and her pop culture moments so easily
@cyrus_full
Miley Cyrus also took the stage with former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne for a performance of David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” that admittedly left more than a few unfamiliar fans scratching their heads over what they were watching. But for those who were into it, there was nothing not to like about it.
Miley Cyrus should bring back the weekly variety hour. pic.twitter.com/9wzsdIu1aOJanuary 1, 2023
Making matters slightly more confusing was the fact that this was the performance where Cyrus decided to bring out her Wednesday Addams dance skills. Again, a mightily strange sight for those who somehow still haven’t watched the Netflix mega-hit, but it was another reason to cherish the award-winning singer for everyone who recognized the unique dance moves.
Miley Cyrus doing the Wednesday Addams dance 🖤 pic.twitter.com/POhhbm8PmgJanuary 1, 2023
And I think it’s safe to say that viewers went somewhere far beyond berserk once fellow beloved pop star Fletcher came out for a steamy and sexy rendition of Cyrus’ “Midnight Sky.” They would have broken the internet with a Zoom-based duet, so the fact that they were on stage and so hands-on was all bonus for many fans out there. Below is one of the more calm and level-headed reactions…
Miley Cyrus and Fletcher…holy hell pic.twitter.com/3vhJTcpGSIJanuary 1, 2023
Which is now followed by one fan’s unencumbered appreciation for one very specific part of the performance.
the way fletcher and miley held hands like that and the gentle thumb stroke??? I’M SCREAMING pic.twitter.com/ccQhdHBW2CJanuary 1, 2023
But for all that was highlighted above, perhaps the most WTF moment of the entire special involved Miley Cyrus taking the stage with Sia and Paris Hilton for a surprise performance of the latter’s “Stars Are Blind.” I won’t go so far as to say it was universally beloved, as there were definitely some naysayers afoot. But by and large, people reacted similar to the person below:
paris hilton and miley cyrus singing ‘stars are blind’ oh my god pic.twitter.com/XX75zo2qU1January 1, 2023
This person doesn’t even have time for anything else here at the beginning of 2023 other than Miley and Paris doing their thing.
good morning only to paris hilton and miley cyrus performing stars are blind pic.twitter.com/7DS5qaW9RsJanuary 1, 2023
Here’s a quick round-up of other opinions that fans had about Miley Cyrus’ sophomore effort for NBC’s New Year’s Eve time slot.
- Thank you to Miley Cyrus and her godmother Dolly Parton for being the folks to really rock us into 2023. Lots of laughter and love. #MileysNewYearsEveParty – @Lulamaybelle
- I think Miley Cyrus has earned the right to sing whatever the fuck she wants. – @djdebutante
- can’t believe we just watched fletcher and miley cyrus fall in love on live tv – @unloversclub
- fletcher and miley cyrus and basically kissing on national television why are people still watching football – @accxrdingtochar
- Paris Hilton sang Stars Are Blind with Miley Cyrus last night and some part of my inner child was just healed. – @katlyngiberson
And to wrap it all up, here’s a final Twitter observation to tie the whole room together.
If Mariah is the Queen of Christmas then Miley is the Queen of New Year’s Eve #MileysNewYearsEveParty
Fans who missed out on the fun when it aired live can still stream Miley’s New Year’s Party with a Peacock subscription. Head to our 2023 TV premiere schedule to see what the new year has to offer.