Cyrus, Miley

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Cyrus, Miley

Career
Sidelights
Selected Discography
Sources

Actress and singer

B orn Destiny Hope Cyrus, November 23, 1992, in Nashville, TN; daughter of Billy Ray (a country music singer and actor) and Leticia Cyrus.

Addresses: Contact—c/o The Disney Channel, 3800 W. Alameda Ave., Burbank, CA 91505.

Career

A ctress on television, including: Doc, 2003; Hannah Montana, 2006—; The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, 2006; The Emperor’s New School, 2007; High School Musical 2 (movie), 2007; The Replacements, 2007. Film appearances include: Big Fish, 2003; Hannah Montana: One in a Million, 2008; Hannah Montana/ Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour, 2008.

Sidelights

I n 2006, Miley Cyrus became a tween and teen sensation when her television series Hannah Montana debuted on the Disney Channel and immediately became one of the most popular shows on the network. The young actress—the daughter of popular country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, who played her father on the show—also sang on Hannah Montana and released several popular albums under her character’s name as well as her own. Cyrus’ popularity as a singer and actress was confirmed by her sold-out concert tours in 2007 and 2008 which saw scalpers charging thousands of dollars for tickets.

Cyrus was born Destiny Hope Cyrus on November 23, 1992, in Nashville, Tennessee, the daughter of Billy Ray and his wife, Leticia, commonly known as Tish. That year, the relatively unknown Billy Ray Cyrus had what was most likely the biggest hit of his career, “Achy Breaky Heart.” While his career was taking off, his new daughter was displaying a sunny personality which earned her the nickname, “Smiley.” Smiley was soon shortened to Miley, which became the name by which she was commonly known.

As a child, Cyrus was interested in music and acting. From an early age, Cyrus wrote songs and sang around the house as much as she could. She also took acting lessons on occasion, and appeared in school plays in Nashville. She made her professional debut on her father’s PAX television series, Doc, in 2003. Later that year, she had also had a small role as Ruthie in the film Big Fish, directed by Tim Burton. While Cyrus did not act for a few years after these roles, she continued working on her music as she attended school and lived a relatively normal life.

In 2005, Cyrus was able to use both her acting and musical gifts in a new creative pursuit. That year, she and 1,000 others auditioned for a new show aimed at young viewers on the Disney Channel— what became Hannah Montana. Though Cyrus was going for the role of sidekick Lilly, she was cast as the titular character in Hannah Montana after a six-month audition process. Writing in the New York Times, Jacques Steinberg explained that “What ultimately won her the job, the producers and network executives say, was her cool confidence , her intuitive comic timing and a husky singing voice not unlike Mary Chapin Carpenter’s.” Cyrus was also tapped to sing the show’s theme song.

In the show, Cyrus’ character lived a double life. During the day, she was Miley Stewart, a normal teenager who dealt with typical middle school and family problems. At night, she was the blond wig-wearing Hannah Montana, a famous singing pop star. While her father Robby Stewart (played by her real-life father, who won the role after her daughter was cast) directed her career, only two of Miley Stewart’s friends have any idea about her other identity. Much of the comedy of the show centered around keeping this secret.

Cyrus admitted playing both characters was a challenge. She told David Kronke of the Daily News of Los Angeles, “As an actor, it’s really fun because you get to experience different things from different perspectives. As a person, it’s a little harder. It’s double the work—not only for me but for the wardrobe people, the hair and makeup people and everyone else. It’s hard but really fun to be the character. The cool part is I’ve gotten to add my own take to it. I relate to both of them so easily.”

Hannah Montana made its debut in March 2006 and was a hit from its first airings. The show made its debut after a repeat airing of the popular Disney movie High School Musical and attracted 5.4 million viewers. When Hannah Montana began appearing in its regular time slot, the show averaged 3.5 million viewers, but viewer numbers later increased as it gained popularity. It soon became the most watched show for six to 14 year olds on cable, and the most popular show on the Disney Channel.

By the time Cyrus began appearing on Hannah Montana, she had written about 100 songs, and a handful of them were used on the show. Singing as Hannah Montana, Cyrus released a soundtrack album for the series in October of 2006. The album featured eight songs from the show. The other five tracks were related to the show, and included “I Learned from You,” a duet with her father. After it debuted at number one on the Billboard album charts, Cyrus toured in support of the record as the opening act for the Cheetah Girls, another popular act created by Disney. The soundtrack eventually went at least triple platinum.

In 2007, Hannah Montana continued to grow in popularity with television audiences. Cyrus had other acting roles in 2007, including guest spots on The Replacements and The Emperor’s New School. Cyrus also had a cameo in the second installment of the Disney Channel’s movie franchise, High School Musical 2.

Cyrus built on the show’s popularity by designing some pieces of the Hannah Montana clothing line put out by Disney as well as releasing another album, the two-disc set Hannah Montana, Vol. 2: Meet Miley Cyrus, in June of 2007. This collection featured both songs Cyrus wrote and sung under her own name as well as more songs from the show she performed as Hannah Montana. Like Hannah Montana, Hannah Montana, Vol. 2: Meet Miley Cyrus debuted at number one on the Billboard album charts and sold more than a million copies in its first week of release, garnering platinum status. Cyrus thus became the youngest recording artist ever with two number-one albums released within a year. Hannah Montana, Vol. 2: Meet Miley Cyrus stayed in the top five on the charts for at least eleven consecutive weeks and eventually achieved double platinum status.

This time when Cyrus toured in support of Hannah Montana, Vol. 2: Meet Miley Cyrus, she was the headliner. In her fall and winter North American tour, Cyrus sang both as herself and Hannah Montana on the tour, dubbed “Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: The Best of Both Worlds,” with the Jonas Brothers as her opening act. When the tour was announced in early fall, ticket demand far outstripped supply for all dates. Most stops sold out in minutes, and scalpers were able to sell tickets for five times the face value or more, with some tickets costing hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Reviewing the tour’s stop in the Bay Area in November of 2007, pop culture critic Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle noted: “Though parts of the stage show lacked polish, for the most part the concert delivered everything a parent could want for an impressionable child who judging from the piercing screams was probably experiencing the highlight of her young life. It was relatively wholesome, musically tolerable, and certainly had plenty of production value. Some of the adults may have walked away wondering what the big fuss was about, but none of the kids looked the least bit disappointed.”

Cyrus’ “Best of Both Worlds” tour extended into 2008 with a new opening act, Aly and AJ. It became one of the top-grossing North American concert tours. A controversy emerged in January of 2008 when a YouTube video showed that Cyrus briefly used a body double in the middle of her set to facilitate the changeover from Hannah Montana to Cyrus herself. Though Cyrus’ publicist acknowledged the use of a body double and explained the situation fully, some fans were outraged by the deception.

Feeling no long-lasting ill effects from the hullabaloo, Cyrus put out two records in 2008, The Best of Both Worlds, a live disc from her tour, and a new disc based on the television show, Hannah Montana 2: Non-Stop Dance Party. She also released a concert movie available only on video, Hannah Montana: One in a Million, and a popular 3D concert film in movie theaters, Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour. When the latter was released on Super Bowl weekend, it became the highest-grossing Super Bowl weekend movie ever; however, the film created another controversy because Cyrus and her father were depicted not wearing their seatbelts in one shot.

Amidst all her success, Cyrus decided to legally change her name from Destiny Hope Cyrus to Mi-ley Ray Cyrus in early 2008. Her new middle name was a nod to her father’s middle moniker and to his importance in her life. While Cyrus was ranked in Forbes’ list of top 20 highest-paid celebrities under the age of 25, her family, especially her father, ensured that she would remain grounded amidst her success. Billy Ray Cyrus told Chuck Barney of the Contra Costa Times, “Our No. 1 rule is love what you do, be happy and be true to yourself and the music. I always say, ‘If you’re not having fun, it ain’t working.’”