The Online Reflector

From cradle to grave, people are told to have a plan. If they do not have a plan, their lives will fall apart. Even when things are not going well, they are told that as long as they have a plan, their lives will be okay.

There has been an influx of what seem to be attention-starved twerking, sloppy young Hollywood stars lately and it doesn’t seem like many have a plan. All viewers see are butts, hung over faces and tangled hair. Rarely do people stop to listen to these stars. They do have plans and their antics aren’t as random as the general public has been led to believe.

Take for example what most of us consider the original member of the twerk team, Miley Cyrus. After watching her documentary, “Miley: The Movement,” I may make her my new hero. We creep on her Twitter, and god knows we’ve seen her videos. But have we ever bothered to actually listen to her interviews?

I thought I was getting into a good Sunday night train wreck when I started the movie. I had judged Cyrus severely for months. I had not watched any of her debauchery but had seen gifs and images on Imgur, a website I frequent. I was ready to have my entire opinion confirmed, but believe it or not, Cyrus is a woman with a plan.

After shaking off my initial shock and disgust, I actually listened to her thoughts about everything that has happened to her in the last couple of years. She obviously observed and learned from her father. Her business sense and talent are incredible. She knows she shocks people, and that is what she wants. Cyrus has a daily schedule to which she strictly adheres. She has a say in how her music sounds and knows her weaknesses as an artist. I still can’t say that I will willingly listen to her music, but at least I can respect her.

Cyrus has carefully crafted her image. She knows how she wants to present herself to the public. Her tweets and performances may seem like random compilations of trash, but in fact she is working toward a goal. She wants to be happy, and she is getting there by working her butt off.

MTV also has given Ke$ha, my favorite train wreck, a platform to document her life. If you want to be inspired for 25 minutes once a week, turn on “Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life.” It is not all glitter and Jack Daniels for this pop star. When you get down to the raw moments in her life, she is a perfectionist with a plan. Much like Cyrus, Ke$ha has been working since high school to get where she is. The commercials may show her partying, but that is only a fraction of her life. I am brought to tears almost weekly by how selfless she is and how she uses her fame. She’s a smart woman who knows what she is doing.

Not all female pop stars are as goal-oriented as these two, like Rihanna and Britney Spears, who let their trashy lifestyle take over. They show us that if you don’t have goals, you’ll end up in rehab. When I listen to them interview, I do not hear the motivations that drive Cyrus and Ke$ha, but a wandering through the music industry that leaves them eaten alive.

Male pop stars are not immune either, and many seem to struggle with plans for their lives. From their interviews, it is clear that many are just coasting on fame. Look at Justin Bieber. This is a boy without a plan. Beloved by so many people, he gives nothing back. The clips from interviews and documentaries show that he is content with where he is. And his image has spiraled down while those “trashy” female musicians show that they are constantly working towards the next project. Beiber has not been shaping his image, but letting Hollywood news shape it. He has no control. Cyrus and Ke$ha have their images under control.

We have seen the triumphs and failures of trashy celebrities since society defined pop culture. There always will be Cyruses, Biebers and Ke$has, but what we should look at as consumers are their endgames. I predict we will hear from Ke$ha and Cyruses the way we still hear from Madonna. They will evolve and keep working toward their goals. “Miley: The Movement” is streaming almost everywhere, and “My Crazy Beautiful Life” has started its second season. I challenge you actually to sit down and watch these shows. You may learn something and be pleasantly surprised.