( CNN ) -- Stop stripping . Stop letting yourself be `` pimped . '' And for heaven 's sake , stop licking sledgehammers , Miley . That 's the advice from Irish singer Sinead O'Connor , who 's penned a motherly , if expletive-laden open letter to former Disney star Miley Cyrus in the wake of a controversial video music awards show performance and the video for her latest single , `` Wrecking Ball . '' `` Nothing but harm will come in the long run , from allowing yourself to be exploited , and it is absolutely NOT in ANY way an empowerment of yourself or any other young women , for you to send across the message that you are to be valued ( even by you ) more for your sexual appeal than your obvious talent , '' the 46-year-old singer says in the letter posted on her official website . Confessions of pop 's wildest child . Cyrus , 20 , was the subject of widespread scorn in August , when she danced provocatively in a skimpy outfit during MTV 's Video Music Awards show . Soon after , she released the video for her latest single , in which she rides a wrecking ball while nude and suggestively licks a sledgehammer . Gauging reaction to Sinead O'Connor 's open letter to Miley Cyrus . `` I am extremely concerned for you that those around you have led you to believe , or encouraged you in your own belief , that it is in any way 'cool ' to be naked and licking sledgehammers in your videos , '' O'Connor wrote . `` It is in fact the case that you will obscure your talent by allowing yourself to be pimped , whether it 's the music business or yourself doing the pimping . '' In a Rolling Stone article , Cyrus compared her look in the `` Wrecking Ball '' video to O'Connor 's style in her iconic 1990 video for `` Nothing Compares 2 U . '' But O'Connor said she chose the shaved-head look in direct defiance of music industry executives who wanted her to present a sexier appearance . Miley and Liam 's engagement is off . She said the music industry does n't care much about Cyrus . `` They will prostitute you for all you are worth , and cleverly make you think it 's what YOU wanted , '' she said . 'Miley : The Movement ' : Five takeaways . While Cyrus has n't directly commented on the letter , she appeared to respond Thursday with a pair of tweets . One made apparent references to O'Connor 's previous struggles with mental illness , and the other showed a picture of O'Connor tearing up a picture of Pope John Paul II in 1992 . O'Connor was in the news in 2011 , when her online efforts to find a `` sweet sex-starved man '' went viral . Billy Ray on his daughter : 'That 's still my Miley '
NEW : Cyrus responds , references O'Connor 's past struggles with mental illness . Comment: `` I am extremely concerned for you , '' O'Connor writes in letter to the former Disney star . The music industry just wants to make money off Cyrus ' youth and beauty , she says .