Get to Know the Parents of Miley Cyrus: Billy Ray Cyrus and Tish Cyrus

Miley Cyrus’ Parents: Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus

Since Miley Cyrus was a child, her parents have always been the main supporters of not only her career but also  her childhood.

Before his daughter, a household name as Hannah Montana, Billy Ray Cyrus had already been widely known as a country music star. His famous song “Achy Breaky Heart” became one of the best-selling singles in 1992, the year after he met his future wife Tish Cyrus, at a club.

They got married in December 1993 and have five children to show for it: Brandi, Trace, Miley, Braison, and Noah. But in April 2022, they decided to get a divorce after 29 years of marriage.

In June 2024, she expressed her feelings about her relationship with both Billy Ray and Tish on the My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman show.

Miley Cyrus’ Parents: Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus

From childhood, Miley Cyrus’ parents have been with her every step of the way, and they have always believed in and supported her career.

Her dad Billy Ray Cyrus had already been a country music star before her Hannah Montana fame. Back in 1992, his song “Achy Breaky Heart” was a huge hit, just one year after he met Tish Cyrus in a club.

The pair got married in December 1993 and had five children: Brandi, Trace, Miley, Braison and Noah. But in April 2022 they revealed that after 29 years of marriage, they will be getting a divorce.

Miley revealed in June 2024 that she has a relationship with both Billy Ray and Tish. She made this known on the television program My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.

‘I’m thankful to have seen him before me. He’s basically handed me this guide. And there is a guide of what to do and what not to do, and he has shown me both, ‘ she talked about her dad. ‘And, by the way, I also got the narcissism from him.’

The singer went on, ‘So probably much of his way of seeing reality and life, I got from him, even more than the way that I was brought up which really, it was my mom who brought me up… If you ask me, my mom is my hero.’

Both of Miley’s parents were with her for the special 20th anniversary of Hannah Montana. Here is what you need to know about Miley Cyrus’ parents, Billy Ray and Tish, and their connection to the Grammy winner.

Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus: Love Started in a Club

Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus were first introduced to each other in a club in 1991. It was the year before the country singer became famous with his song “Achy Breaky Heart”.

On June 2017, Tish revealed to PEOPLE Now that she actually drew Billy Ray’s attention because he admired that she was not drinking. “Do you know the first thing he said to me?” she asked. ” ‘I have never seen you drink, ever, and that is what I find so cool, ‘ ” She added that her friends at the time were “so rowdy.”

Two years after that, they tied the knot in Tennessee on Dec. 28, 1993. Their connection has greatly influenced Miley’s life and career with both parents giving her their complete support from the very beginning.

Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus: Raising a Family of Five Children

Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus are raising five children. Brandi and Trace are Tish’s children from her previous relationship. The country star adopted them after he and Tish got married in 1993.

The couple’s firstborn together was Miley in 1992, followed by their son Braison in 1994. Their youngest daughter, Noah, was born in 2000.

Besides their five kids, Billy Ray and Tish are blessed with one grandchild. Braison’s wife, Stella McBride, and he welcomed their son, Bear Chance, in June 2021. The family has played a pivotal role in Miley’s life and career, with both parents continuing to stand behind her.

Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus: Supporting Miley’s Career

Although Billy Ray also has a hit record singing career, he didn’t easily accept Miley entering the world of showbusiness. The pop star in a Rolling Stone interview in September 2013 confessed that her dad was the one she had to persuade to get his permission to audition for Hannah Montana.

“Probably, he just didn’t want me to experience that kind of rejection, ” she said. “It was one of his intentions not to have me get hurt by the industry.”

Concerning Tish, Miley opened up to Rolling Stone that it was her mom who pushed her to go for acting as a career since she had once thought of being a performer but didn’t follow her dream because of anxiety.

“She did ballet from the time she was three till she was 30, but she was very shy, ” Miley added. “She said these things were not for her, so she wanted it for me. I get anxiety too, and she didn’t want my anxiety to ever stop me from doing it in the way that it stopped her.”

Billy Ray Cyrus: A Country Music Star

Billy Ray Cyrus blasted his way to country music fame when he dropped “Achy Breaky Heart” in 1992, and the hit track reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.

That same year he dropped his first album, Some Gave All, and has released various studio albums since then, like Storm in the Heartland, Southern Rain, and Back to Tennessee. After starring in Hannah Montana alongside his daughter Miley, Billy also dropped a handful of songs with his daughter such as “Butterfly Fly Away” and “Ready, Set, Don’t Go.”

The country singer had his first No. 1 hit when his name was on the remix of Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” in 2019. The song stayed No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for a number of weeks and also became a viral hit on social media. The entire family has been a mainstay in Miley’s personal and professional life, with the parents actively supporting her from the get-go.

Miley Cyrus: A Fierce and Passionate Ally

Miley Cyrus has always been crystal clear about her own sexuality and she has often used her voice to highlight the issues faced by the LGBTQ community. Miley reminisced about a talk with her mom, Tish, when she was 14 years old, during which Miley informed her mother that she was queer.

“I told her I see women in a different light. Tish then asked, ‘What does that mean?’ I responded, ‘I love them. I love them the same way I love boys.’ That was quite difficult for her to grasp, ” she continued. “She was concerned that I would be looked down upon, and she even thought that I might go to hell. However, she has more faith in me than in any god. I simply wanted her to recognize me. And she does.”

During an interview with Variety in October 2016, Miley mentioned that her mom was sorry for not understanding her when she was coming out after she saw her daughter’s interaction with a contestant on The Voice. The family has played a huge role in Miley’s life and career, with both parents supporting her right from the start.

Miley Cyrus: Family Support and Acceptance

Miley Cyrus opened up about how her mother’s attitude changed when she witnessed the good influence Miley was having on others. “During The Voice, a girl was in tears when she left because I was the reason she came out. My mom, she was crying too, ” Miley reminisced. “She said, ‘I’m so sorry for how I treated you when you were that age and coming out.’ She never really got me until she saw that girl who was not able to be herself.”

Miley thinks that her parents were always going to understand her. In 2015, when Miley came out as pansexual, Billy Ray said their family completely supported her to E! News.

“We have always been very liberal in our thinking, ” he explained. “Hey, in the end it is only about love and positivity. Ignore the negative and the haters… What the world really needs is love. There is so much hate already.” Both parents have stayed a very important part of Miley’s life and have changed with her as she has grown through her career and identity.

Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus: Divorce and Fresh Starts

After the two of them had previously filed for divorce, in April 2022, Tish Cyrus filed for divorce again, ending her almost thirty years of marriage to Billy Ray Cyrus, citing “irreconcilable differences.”

“It has been 30 years, five wonderful children and a lifetime of memories to us that we have now decided to go our separate ways, not with sadness, but with love in our hearts, who are we, ” they said in a joint statement to PEOPLE. “We have grown up together, raised a family we can all be proud of, and now it is time for us to create our own paths.”

Besides that, they stated that the reunion would go on, and the focus would still be on co-parenting and maintaining a loving relationship.

Both have quite a bit of a new life after the breakup. Tish got married to Dominic Purcell in August 2023, and Billy Ray married Firerose in October 2023 and got divorced in May 2024. At the same time, he began dating Elizabeth Hurley.

Miley Cyrus: Different Perspectives on Fame and Success

Miley Cyrus reveals that she and her father, Billy Ray, have very “wildly different” connections to fame. Talking about their divergent upbringings, Miley shared in her August 2023 special Endless Summer Vacation: Continued (Backyard Sessions)

“My dad grew up completely different from me. I was raised on a soundstage, with a family that was super close and all under one roof, and I was okay financially and emotionally. Those are the things my dad didn’t have, ” she explained.

Miley was saying that, unlike her, her father emotionally depended on fame, considering it as a remedy to his early life wounds. “It’s like if he’s feeling important or special, that’s also like healing a childhood wound to him, whereas I’ve been raised from the very beginning to feel and to be made like a star, ” she revealed.

Besides the fact that her dad is a country star who has been a big part of the music world, Miley also mentioned that he was a big influence in how she sees career. “I certainly have a lot of wonderful memories with my dad singing music and learning and watching his voice and the way that he’s using the instrument, ” she said. “I want to say that to me vocally my dad was a very underappreciated artist.” The parents have always been a strong influence in Miley’s life, changing with her as she developed her career and her identity.

Tish Cyrus: Miley’s mother and manager

Tish Cyrus has probably always worked as Miley’s manager and also her biggest protector through her entire career.

In a September 2016 interview with Elle, Miley revealed how thankful she was for her mom’s advice during the time when she was Hannah Montana. “My mom started realizing how vulnerable children are to exploitation and she got smart people around me for protection, ” she recalled. “I am glad that when I was a child, people protected me and arranged it so that I have now the freedom to make my own music.”

Regardless of the times they disagreed, Tish has been there for her daughter always. On the Chicks in the Office podcast in July 2020, she admitted, “There were also times when she was breaking the limits and so we would have fights, and I was disciplining her… like a full mama bear.”

Then she said, “Nevertheless, I believe she was, deep down, aware that I was doing it for her love. And therefore in the end, it all worked out.”

Tish Cyrus: A Special Wedding Day with Miley

It was in August 2023 when Tish Cyrus decided to get married to actor Dominic Purcell at Miley’s residence in Malibu, California. Miley was among the bridesmaids for her mother, dressed in a blue one-shouldered gown by Bec & Bridge.

In a Vogue feature regarding the nuptials, Miley expressed the significance of attending her mother’s wedding day with her. “Throughout my life, my mom has been a behind-the-scenes person, ” she noted. “She was always the one preparing me for big days, at first with cheerleading competitions, then eventually on sets or backstage before a performance. She has never stopped celebrating me and has been so supportive of my decisions. I feel honored to be that person for her, now that I’m older.”

“I love seeing my mom so happy and in love, ” Miley stated. “It was such a wonderful day, just like them. I will always remember the time I stood beside my mother and gave her away to Dom.” Both mother and father have been essential figures in Miley’s life, as they have grown and changed with her while she has been discovering her career and identity.