MTV picks Miley Cyrus as artist of the year

Miley Cyrus performs during the KIIS-FM Jingle Ball concert at Staples Center, Los Angeles, on Dec. 6. (AP-Yonhap News)

NEW YORK (AP) ― Here’s something to wag a tongue at: MTV says Miley Cyrus is the best artist of the year.

The former child star twerked her way to the top. Her eye-popping duet with Robin Thicke on the MTV Video Music Awards was one of the year’s most talked about cultural events.

MTV said Monday the VMA duet on “We Can’t Stop” and “Blurred Lines” was the year’s most-watched video on its websites. Similarly, the MTV artist site devoted to Cyrus had more visits than any other artist’s.

Besides “We Can’t Stop,” the song “Wrecking Ball” and album “Bangerz” were big hits for Cyrus, who also had notable appearances on “Saturday Night Live” and MTV’s European music awards show.

MTV executives pick their top artist. One Direction won last year, and Katy Perry won the year before.

This year, Cyrus was an easy choice, said Amy Doyle, head of MTV’s music and talent programming strategy.

“She dominated the music charts and critics’ best-of lists while creating some of the year’s most memorable moments,” Doyle said.