Miley Cyrus Shares Album Art For Younger Now, Will Debut Title Track on Friday

A lot happened at the Teen Choice Awards last night, but none of it involved Miley Cyrus. The singer, who was set to accept the prestigious Ultimate Choice award, skipped out on the annual award show. In an Instagram post later, she explained the reason she chose not to show up for the show, writing, "I created an unrealistic schedule for myself," which is our new go-to line for skipping out on literally every plan we make with friends moving forward.

Related | Miley Cyrus Announces Release Date For New Album, Younger Now

As you may have noticed, the "Malibu" singer is in the middle of a tectonic shift in her image as she moves away from rap and The Flaming Lips, and cozies up to her country roots. To ease the disappoint fans might've had about her skipping the Teen Choice Award equivalent to a Lifetime Achievement Award, she shared the artwork for her upcoming album, Younger Now, and announced the title track's song and video will release on Friday.

The album art fits with the direction Cyrus is heading in, featuring a childhood yearbook portrait smiling around pop art border of hearts and stars. Alongside the announcement, Cyrus ended on an uplifting note with a veiled reference to the current political climate, saying: "I hope to always make people smile and shine light thru my work! I look forward to making music for the rest of my life and I'm thankful everyday for those who listen! I am sending so much love and peace into the world right now because THATS what we need most! Love Love & more LOVE!"

To my dearest fans & all of those watching @teenchoicefox ! I want to say thank you from the very bottom of my heart for presenting me with #TheUltimateChoiceAward ! I am beyond bummed I couldn't make it to the show as I had every intention of being there to accept and celebrate this honor! I created an unrealistic schedule for myself which leads me to this announcement! I've been tryin to keep the secret but I can't hide it any longer! My new single / music video #YoungerNow will be dropping this Friday , Aug 18th & I am sooooooo EXCITED to share it with all of you! I hope to always make people smile and shine light thru my work! I look forward to making music for the rest of my life and I'm thankful everyday for those who listen! I am sending so much love and peace into the world right now because THATS what we need most! Love Love & more LOVE!

A post shared by Miley Cyrus (@mileycyrus) on Aug 13, 2017 at 6:14pm PDT