She is the daughter of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus and his wife Tish. Billy Ray is best known for his 1992 hit single "
Achy Breaky Heart" The pair performed a duet together in 2009, "
Butterfly Fly Away," for the soundtrack of
Hannah Montana: The Movie.
Miley has five siblings - two half-brothers, a half-sister and a younger brother and sister. One of her maternal half brothers, Trace Cyrus, was the frontman of Metro Station, who had a Top 10 hit with "
Shake It."
Her birth name is Destiny Hope, but she acquired a childhood nickname of Smiley because of her cheerful disposition, which was eventually shortened to Miley. In January 2008, she legally changed her name from Destiny Hope Cyrus to Miley Ray Cyrus. ("Ray" being for her grandfather, Ronald Ray Cyrus, whom she was especially close to).
When she turned 8, Miley's family moved to Toronto, where Billy Ray took a role in the TV series Doc. Her first acting job came alongside her father in Doc, when she appeared as Kylie in the pilot episode.
In 2005, Miley was cast as the lead in the Disney TV series Hannah Montana, having originally tried out for the part of Lilly Truscott. Her portrayal of a teen who has a secret identity as recording superstar Hannah Montana was a smash hit and resulted in Miley becoming a teen superstar.
When the Hannah Montana soundtrack topped the Billboard 200 on November 11, 2006, the 13-year-old Miley became the youngest solo female singer to ever have a #1 album on the chart.
Her next album, Hannah Montana 2 (Soundtrack)/Meet Miley Cyrus, established Cyrus as a real-life singer and also went to #1.
Miley's lyrics for her 2008 single "
Fly on the Wall" were written about the constant attention she was getting. She explained to MTV News: "'Fly on the Wall' is about the media. It's about how they think they know everything about me, when they don't. They want to be a fly on my wall and watch me 24/7."
Miley started showing signs that she wanted to start to distance herself from her teen fan base when she sparked controversy at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards. Her performance of "
Party in the U.S.A." featured a pole protruding from an ice cream cart and some provocative dance moves.
By the time Miley released her fourth album,
Bangerz, in 2013, she had become associated with a controversial public image. Its singles "
We Can't Stop," "
Wrecking Ball" and "
Adore You" were all promoted with provocative music videos and Miley's twerking performance at the MTV Video Music Awards was one of the most discussed pop culture moments of the year.
Miley was chosen by Time as one of their finalists for the magazine's Person of the Year in November 2013. She came in third place with 16.3% of the vote.
She has dated Nick Jonas of the
Jonas Brothers and model Justin Gaston. Miley met Australian actor Liam Hemsworth in 2009 on the set of her movie,
The Last Song and was engaged to him for about a year before breaking up in 2013. Several of the
Bangerz tracks were inspired by the end of their relationship.
Cyrus and Hemsworth got back together a few years later. They tied the knot in an intimate wedding ceremony at their Tennessee home on December 23, 2018. Cyrus announced their separation on August 10, 2019.
Miley is known for her love of dogs, often posting photos of herself with her pet pooches on Twitter and Facebook, and frequently being snapped by the paparazzi walking them around town.
Speaking to Lady La on her radio show in January 2014, Miley revealed that she wears heels a lot as she's only 5'4" and tries to look 5'9."
Miley is often seen sticking her tongue out in photos, which she says is a reaction to feeling uncomfortable. "I'm so embarrassed, because people are taking pictures of me, and I just don't know how to," she said. "I don't know how to smile, and just be awkward, so I stick my tongue out, because I don't know what else to do."
Miley Cyrus' Malibu home, which she shared with Hemsworth, was destroyed in the Californian wildfires of November 2018. The singer was away at the time but the Australian actor was able to save their many pets.
During Miley Cyrus' appearance in November 2020 on
Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the host revealed that the singer has 74 tattoos.
Cyrus
told the New York Times in 2025 that she regrets about 80% of her inks, but not enough to remove them, viewing them as snapshots of her life, even if there are a few she "could have skipped."
On December 31, 2021, she hosted Miley's New Year's Eve Party on NBC, a younger, hipper alternative to ABC's New Year's Rockin' Eve. The following year, she hosted the special with Dolly Parton, but in 2023 it was bumped for Sunday Night Football.
Miley has long had a famously raspy, unmistakable voice, but she now trains and protects it with great care. After experiencing vocal cord issues, she's learned to give herself boundaries and to treat her voice "like the instrument that it is." Despite its changes over time, she embraces how it has aged and evolved with her.
Miley Cyrus has a surprisingly old-school favorite performance venue: hotel lobbies. She loves playing at the lobby piano, singing for whoever is around, then simply taking the elevator back to her room. She does this because she doesn't get the same experience backstage at traditional venues.
"The backstage of a venue is nothing like what the audience experiences,"
she explained to Billboard. "There's a locker room. I'm not getting ready in a locker room."
In a December 2025 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Miley Cyrus revealed that she hates paper. The sight of paper, especially in the winter when everyone's hands are dry and scratchy, makes her feel physically ill. Her worst triggers? Dry hands on paper around Christmas, cue cards, letters, and Amazon boxes.
Cyrus' paper phobia has turned her into an accidental digital minimalist. She avoids opening physical mail, sticks to texts and email, and was "so happy" when e-readers became a thing so she could finally stop wrestling with real books.
Cardboard packaging is the boss level of the phobia; she's described it as "particularly bad," to the point where she has other people open packages outside the house.
