Cher rips Miley's dancing, song, physique, oral hygiene

Edna Gundersen | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Miley's antics garner $79 million | USA NOW video Shannon Rae Green hosts USA NOW for Sept. 18, 2013, with updates on the Miley Cyrus PR phenomenon bringing in big bucks. Who's next to jump on the publicity wrecking ball?

Cher has a few choice words about the Miley Cyrus twerk-a-thon on MTV's Video Music Awards.

The hyperactive, sexual performance with Robin Thicke was "so bad," says the famously outspoken diva, 67.

But not for reasons that riled most skittish viewers. Cher, no stranger to controversy and scandal, didn't find any shock value in Cyrus' tongue-wagging, booty-thumping display.

"I'm not old-fashioned," Cher tells USA TODAY in an interview to promote new album Closer to the Truth. "She could have come out naked, and if she'd just rocked the house, I would have said, 'You go, girl.' It just wasn't done well. She can't dance, her body looked like hell, the song wasn't great, one cheek was hanging out. And, chick, don't stick out your tongue if it's coated."

The performance seemed ill-conceived, Cher adds.

"If you're going to go that far, then think about it before you do it," she says.

Cher made waves for her 1989 If I Could Turn Back Time video shot before sailors aboard the USS Missouri battleship. She wore a body stocking over a skimpy swimsuit that revealed her tattooed bottom.