Britney Spears defends Miley Cyrus' VMAs performance

Well before Miley Cyrus twerked her way to the top of the news with her scandalous MTV Video Music Awards performance, Britney Spears was having her own controversial period.

Before Cyrus' performance, Spears furthered her notoriety with her own nude bodysuit -- that one, bedazzled -- and for her own scandalous VMAs performance in which she kissed Madonna.

During an interview with "Good Morning America," Spears defended the "Wrecking Ball" singer's new image.

"I think any time you do a performance that is that memorable, you're going to have criticism," Spears said. "I think she's doing her thing. She's being herself, so I give props to her."

Spears is featured on Cyrus' upcoming album, "Bangerz" on the track "SMS (Bangerz)."

Earlier this summer, Cyrus said she had bonded with Spears due to their similar public images.

"Everyone goes through a time in their life where they don't want their picture taken every day," Cyrus said of Spears. "She just never had that time where she could say, 'I'm going through something right now and need to shut down.' I also don't have that, so it's good to have that one person in my life who gets it."