At just 16, she is ranked 35th on the 2008 Forbes Celebrity 100, making this year a lucrative one for the Hannah Montana star. But it was also her headline-making antics which dominated the news.
In January, there was talk of Cyrus exhibiting lesbian behaviour when a series of photos leaked onto the Internet showed her and an unidentified friend in questionable poses.
The following month, Cyrus and her father, country singer Billy Ray, 47, got into trouble for not buckling up their seatbelts while filming in the back seat of a Range
Rover for her new movie.
But it was Cyrus' Vanity Fair photo spread that made people realise this little girl, who was then just shy of 16, was growing up.
In the April issue of the magazine, Cyrus appeared topless with just a piece of cloth wrapped around her body.
The shoot, done by lenswoman Annie Leibovitz, created ire among the mothers of Cyrus' tween fans. The Disney Channel, which broadcasts Cyrus' TV show, even
issued a statement condemning the shoot.
As for Cyrus, she took the opportunity to blast Americans for being too conservative, telling The Daily Record earlier this month: "Everyone outside of America liked it a
little bit more because that’s more like the style, but the States are really conservative."
This article was first published in The New Paper on Dec 31, 2008.