When Miley Cyrus released her 2007 hit “See You Again,” perhaps the best-known lyric was the excuse, “she’s just being Miley,” bringing to mind images of her innocent childhood days as a Disney Channel star on “Hannah Montana.”

Her Video Music Awards performance in 2013 continues to sneak its way into daily conversation, and Cyrus has gone out of her way to continue to prove her maturity, making sure fans know she has relinquished the innocence of her Hannah Montana persona.

Yet during the beginning dates of her “Bangerz Tour,” Cyrus seemed to maintain a carefree appearance of joviality.

Some may claim that Cyrus is acting out, but it appears more that she is now trying to reclaim the childhood she was pried from — like many child stars, she was forced to be mature at an early age.

While some childhood stars refute claims of acting out, Cyrus acknowledges her recent behavior, saying that she has chosen to reverse her former dilemma — instead of putting on a mask of maturity as she did in her youth, she promises to misbehave in her adult life.

With the start of her “Bangerz Tour” — her first tour since reinventing herself and sexualizing her image — Cyrus is continuing unabashed in her retreat of childhood. She is running her tour under her own terms, and making audiences expect the unexpected.

When Cyrus performed “Adore You” during the tour’s Los Angeles stop, she removed herself from the stage, approached Katy Perry and proceeded to kiss her. Following the kiss, Cyrus announced that she “kissed a girl” and that she “really, really liked it.”

Proving that whatever happens in Vegas does not actually stay in Vegas, Cyrus made headlines after she kissed another female audience member on March 1. Once again during “Adore You,” which features a kiss-cam, Cyrus opted to kiss a fan as opposed to a celebrity attendee.

After video footage surfaced that revealed Cyrus wiping her lips following the kiss, she explained on Twitter to the “mystery babe” that she was simply “wiping off the dark lipstick that was all over [her] face.”

Along with her antics of kissing audience members, Cyrus has also been seen placing fans’ undergarments in her mouth on stage.

This raunchiness has led to various protests, such as livid parents even attempting to shut down the tour. Justifiably, parents remain unwilling to expose their children to the provocativeness, but it is puzzling as to why those parents seem to be expecting the Disney-fied version of Cyrus.

If her performance at the VMAs was not a clear enough indication, Cyrus is no longer the child she once was. At 21, Cyrus is on top of the music industry and simply having fun.

A version of this article appeared in the Tuesday, March 11 print edition. Alexa Spieler is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].