Billy Ray Cyrus has broken his silence after daughter Miley Cyrus dropped their famous surname from her professional identity, a move that drew criticism online because it came only days after the passing of her godmother Dolly Parton.
Rather than taking offense at his daughter becoming simply “Miley,” the 65-year-old country singer made clear that he supports the decision.
Highlights
- Billy Ray Cyrus publicly supported Miley dropping Cyrus from her professional identity.
- The rebrand drew criticism because it arrived less than a week after Dolly Parton’s passing.
- Billy Ray compared his daughter’s move to stars including Dolly, Cher, Elvis and Prince, calling it a “natural progression.”
“Family means more than ever now,” Billy Ray wrote on September 2 alongside a throwback photograph of himself with a young Miley and her brother Braison.
“I always called my little girl Miley. Just ... Miley.”
Miley dropped the Cyrus name less than a week after losing Dolly Parton
Billy Ray revealed that he and his daughter had already spoken privately about the rebrand the day before his post.
“I told Miley yesterday I felt good about her going with her first name,” he wrote.
“I mentioned Dolly and Cher,” Billy Ray continued. “Thinkin’ about it more and more ... Elvis ... Prince ... and so on. It’s a natural progression for an iconic superstar legend.”
His endorsement arrives after several days of debate surrounding Miley’s decision to remove Cyrus from her social media presence and promote her upcoming album, Bass Persuades, entirely under her first name.
It’s important to note that the change is a professional rebrand, with no announcement that Miley has legally changed her surname.
Her official website was similarly rebranded, ahead of the release of her next album on September 18.
“Music takes hold of us. We feel it, sing it, sometimes dance to it, let it out and carry on,” Miley wrote while introducing the project. “It is powerful, vulnerable, sweet and strong.”
“Heart full, heartache, every part of life in between. That’s what the title means to me,” she continued before thanking fans and signing the message simply, “Miley.”
The timing of the singer’s artistic name immediately attracted criticism
Dolly Parton passed away on August 25 at 80, leaving Miley mourning a woman who had been present throughout her entire life.
“It hasn’t even been a week since Dolly’s passing ... this is so weird of her,” one person complained online.
Others accused the singer of taking advantage of the attention around her godmother’s passing for commercial purposes.
“She doesn’t give a f*** about Dolly. She cares only about her awful music,” one critic wrote.
Other fans pushed back, arguing that an album campaign of this size would have been organized well in advance of Parton’s passing.
“Album rollouts are planned months in advance,” one person pointed out.
Another argued that continuing to work was precisely what Parton would have encouraged her goddaughter to do.
“This is what Dolly would have wanted. For her to keep going and not stop,” they wrote.
Miley said Dolly would have wanted her to keep making music
Miley issued an emotional tribute to Parton on August 26, describing the depth of the loss as something she did not feel comfortable fully sharing publicly.
“The feeling of losing my Aunt Dolly is beyond what feels right to share,” she wrote. “Our most sacred moments were private and they’ll stay there behind the stage, beneath the glamour & between our hearts.”
But Miley said she was certain how Parton would want her to respond.
“What I know is Dolly would want me to feel it, write a song about it, and then continue on and be strong,” she wrote. “I have an angel by my side. I always have.”
One of their final conversations, Miley revealed, had centered on “music and metamorphosis.”
Parton had known Miley throughout her life through her longstanding friendship with Billy Ray. She appeared as her character’s godmother on Hannah Montana, performed with her numerous times and collaborated on songs including Rainbowland and a later version of Wrecking Ball.
That history made Billy Ray’s comparison particularly notable when he addressed the name controversy.
He did not see Miley removing Cyrus as rejecting her family. Instead, he compared the move to Parton reaching the point where simply saying Dolly was enough.
Billy Ray said he once wanted to do almost exactly the same thing
Billy Ray also revealed that Miley’s decision reminded him of his own early ambitions.
“Bet you didn’t know... I was just CYRUS before Achy Breaky Heart came out in ’92,” he wrote.
Before his breakthrough single turned him into a country star, Billy Ray said he had even commissioned merchandise with the name.
“All of my swag and T-shirts only read, CYRUS SOME GAVE ALL with a picture of a POW MIA flag on it and the words... ‘You are not forgotten,’” he recalled.
Some Gave All became Billy Ray’s enormously successful 1992 debut album and included Achy Breaky Heart, the hit that made his full name internationally recognizable.
“Now... if only Mercury / Polygram would have just not insisted on the ‘Billy Ray’ part and just let me be CYRUS... I could have done something!!!” he joked. “Ha ha!!! All good.”
He finished his comments by throwing his support behind Miley’s next musical chapter.
“And the legend continues!” he wrote. “Looking forward to the new album.”
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