Miley fueled rumors of a Cyrus family feud after she snubbed Billy Ray during her Grammy Awards acceptance speech
Miley Cyrus’ mom Tish Cyrus disagreed with her ex-husband Billy Ray Cyrus’ statement that the TV show “Hannah Montana” caused harm to their family.
Miley, who is 31, and her dad Billy Ray, who is 62, acted on the Disney Channel show for four years from 2006 to 2011. The show made Miley famous and boosted Billy Ray’s career as a country singer.
But Billy Ray said in a 2011 interview with GQ magazine that “Hannah Montana” had a bad effect on their family. However, during a podcast called “Call Her Daddy” with her oldest daughter Brandi Cyrus, 36, Tish strongly disagreed with Billy Ray’s past comments.
“Tish firmly said no when asked if she agreed with Billy Ray’s idea that the show ruined their family,” Brandi added.
“Not,” Brandi agreed. “I mean, our family isn’t ruined, first of all. We’re doing well.”
“Yeah, I just think he was feeling emotional at the time,” Tish said.
Billy Ray and Tish became parents to Miley in 1992 and got married the next year. Apart from Miley, they also have a son Braison, 29, and a daughter Noah, 24. Billy Ray also has a son named Christopher Cody Cyrus from a previous relationship with Kristen Luckey. Tish is the mother of Brandi and her son Trace from a previous relationship. After marrying Tish, Billy Ray legally adopted Brandi and Trace.
Billy Ray and Tish went through many challenges in their marriage before eventually separating after 30 years together in 2023. Billy Ray initially filed for divorce in 2010, but they reconciled the next year. In June 2013, Tish filed for divorce, but they reunited a month later.
In 2011, right after “Hannah Montana” ended and during his first separation from Tish, Billy Ray commented to GQ magazine about how he felt the show affected his family.
When asked if he thought “Hannah Montana” contributed to his family issues and impending divorce, Billy Ray said, “Oh, it’s significant — it ruined my family.”
He went on, “I’ll tell you right now — the show ruined my family. And I have to accept that. It’s my motto, and I have to own up to it. While everyone else was making money, I was sacrificing everything. It’s just sad.”
The interviewer then asked if he regretted the show ever happening.
“I hate to admit it, but yes, I do,” Billy Ray replied. “Yeah. I’d take it back instantly. I’d do anything for my family to be okay, safe, happy, and normal. Yeah, I’d undo it all if I could.”
While talking on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, Tish shared that she was the one who suggested Billy Ray audition for his role on “Hannah Montana.”
“I’m trying to be respectful,” she said before remembering that she felt Billy Ray’s career had slowed down after the success of his hit song “Achy Breaky Heart” in 1992.
“I mean, he had his big hit with ‘Achy Breaky’ and then things weren’t going so well,” Tish explained. “And then I took Miley to audition for ‘Hannah’ and she got the part. Then one of the casting directors joked, ‘Too bad we can’t afford her real dad!’ And I said, ‘Well, maybe you can.'”
Tish mentioned that Billy Ray was working on another show in Toronto at the time, and the family was splitting their time between there and their home in Tennessee.
“We were constantly traveling between Toronto and Tennessee, and it was tough on the kids,” she remembered.
“Tish continued, “Miley had already landed ‘Hannah,’ and I was already worried about, ‘What are we going to do?’ I couldn’t bear to have some of my kids in Tennessee while I was in Los Angeles with Miley. It just wasn’t an option for me as a mom.
“So, I decided to bring all the kids with me. That’s when I suggested to Billy Ray, ‘You should audition for the dad role. They like you, and it’s a great opportunity to keep our family together.’ Sure, it meant a pay cut, but it was worth it to have us all together.”
Tish, who has been managing Miley’s career for a long time, talked about the difficulties she faced juggling Miley’s acting career and spending enough time with her other children. She felt like she was a “single parent” back then because both Billy Ray and Miley had demanding schedules filming “Hannah Montana.”
“I think back on those times, and honestly, I don’t know how I managed,” Tish said. “It wasn’t easy.”
She went on, “But I just found a way to make it work, and I brought the kids along. I mean, it was a sacrifice for everyone.”
Tish’s remarks come amidst rumors of tension within the Cyrus family. Speculation arose when Noah Cyrus didn’t attend her mother Tish Cyrus’ wedding to Dominic Purcell in August 2023. Both Noah and Braison were noticeably absent from the wedding festivities. Instead, the siblings reportedly spent the day together, as evidenced by an Instagram story showing them at Walmart, with Noah wearing a shirt featuring Billy Ray.
On the other hand, Miley took on the role of maid of honor at her mother’s wedding and walked Tish down the aisle during the ceremony in MaliBrandi and Trace also attended Tish’s wedding race.
Miley shared with Vogue how her mom has always been there for her behind the scenes throughout her life. From getting her ready for cheerleading competitions to preparing her for performances, Tish has consistently supported her decisions and celebrated her achievements. Now that Miley is older, she feels honored to reciprocate that support for her mom.
Seeing her mom so happy and in love with Dom is deeply moving for Miley. She describes their love as genuine and sweet, almost like experiencing it for the first time, which perfectly reflects her mom’s youthful spirit. Since Tish and Dom met, they seem to be aging backward, and Miley believes her mom has become even more beautiful. The wedding day was incredibly special and magical, just like the couple themselves. Being able to stand beside her mother and give her away to Dom is a moment that Miley will treasure for the rest of her life.
Months later, Miley was not present when Billy Ray married Australian singer Firerose, who is 34 years old. The couple had announced their engagement in November 2022. Billy Ray shared with People magazine that he first met Firerose 13 years ago on the set of “Hannah Montana” when she auditioned for a role.
Although Firerose didn’t land the part, Billy Ray saw her potential and introduced her to some industry producers. Despite not getting the role, they remained friends. Their friendship turned into a romantic relationship after Billy Ray and Tish filed for divorce for the third time. Firerose moved in with Billy Ray shortly after.
A month after announcing their engagement, Miley and Billy Ray stopped following each other on Instagram.
In 2022, a source told E! News that Miley’s relationship with her dad had been strained due to her parents’ divorce. It had been challenging for her to connect with him in the past year, but she hoped they could eventually work on their relationship.
When Tish filed for divorce in 2022, Billy Ray addressed rumors of a feud, stating, “Everyone knew that relationship was over a long time ago. Everybody’s moving forward. It’s been tough, but everyone knew it was time for a change.”
At the time of their divorce filing, the former couple disclosed that they had been separated for two years.
Miley has seldom discussed her father in the years since, but in August 2023, she spoke out about their differing perspectives on fame.
She mentioned in her TikTok series, “Used To Be Young,” that her upbringing was vastly different from her father’s. While she grew up in a close-knit family with financial and emotional stability, her father’s upbringing was quite the opposite.
Miley reflected on the positive memories of singing and learning music with her dad, acknowledging his talent and the influence he had on her musical journey.
Miley mentioned that she believes her father’s vocal talents were not fully recognized.
However, rumors of tension between Miley and Billy Ray intensified when Miley won her first-ever Grammy Award last Sunday. She took home two awards: Best Solo Pop Performance and record of the Year.
During her acceptance speech for record of the year for her song “Flowers,” Miley noticeably left out her father, Noah, Trace, and Braison when expressing gratitude. Instead, she thanked her team, Columbia Records, her mother, Brandi, and her boyfriend Maxx Morando, who is 25 years old. Miley also mentioned her “main gays” and other loved ones, before humorously adding that she might have forgotten someone and joking about forgetting underwear.
Billy Ray didn’t publicly congratulate his daughter on her Grammy wins. However, on Tuesday, he posted a photo on Instagram with a caption that some fans interpreted as referring to the rumored feud.
“Love is the answer,” Billy Ray wrote alongside a picture of himself and Firerose cuddling in a field.
Aside from speculation about tension between Billy Ray and Miley, rumors have circulated about a rift among the Cyrus siblings. Some fans have suggested that Noah and Braison’s absence from Tish’s wedding might indicate that the siblings have taken sides regarding their parents’ divorce and Billy Ray’s remarriage.
Noah made headlines last October after leaving a comment on a video from Miley’s 2020 appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
At that time, Miley described Noah as an “emo kid” and expressed her admiration for her sister’s song “The End of Everything,” released that year. However, she also joked that the EP was incredibly depressing.
In response to the clip, Noah commented, “The disrespect in this video…”
After the video circulated online, fans observed that Noah’s comment came three years after Miley’s interview and during the rumored Cyrus family feud.