Miley Cyrus – Who Owns My Heart (update!)

Miley Cyrus, born Destiny Hope Cyrus[3](born November 23, 1992[1]) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter who gained popularity for her starring role in the television series Hannah Montana, which aired from 2006 to 2011 on the Disney Channel.

Cyrus’ acting career began with episodic roles in the TV series Doc and the movie Big Fish. She also provided the voice for the animated film Bolt. The theme song from the film, “I Thought I Lost You”, which she recorded as a duet with John Travolta, was nominated for a Golden Globe Award[4]. From 2006 to 2011, she was the lead character in the television series Hannah Montana. In 2009, she played the lead role in Hannah Montana: The Movie and The Last Song. Three years later, you could look forward to two more movies starring Cyrus, LOL and Secret Agent.

She wrote music for the soundtracks of the Hannah Montana series, i.e. the albums: Hannah Montana (2006) and Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus (2007), Hannah Montana 3 (2009) and Hannah Montana Forever (2011), which were released by Walt Disney Records. In 2009, she signed with Hollywood Records, which launched her solo career. Back in 2009, she embarked on the Best of Both Worlds Tour, which resulted in the concert film Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, released a year later. In July 2008, she unveiled her first album entirely unrelated to Hannah Montana, titled Breakout, which contributed to the singer being named to Time magazine’s Top 100 list. In the first week of its release, the album sold 371,000 copies, by the end of July 2008 it had already sold 1.5 million copies.

In 2009 she presented a more mature image with the minialbum The Time of Our Lives. From this album comes the best-selling single in Miley’s career, “Party in the U.S.A.”. In 2010, she released another solo album, entitled Can’t Be Tamed, which maintains a dance-pop vibe. The lead single from the album with the same title showed a new, more sexual image of the artist.

In 2010, Forbes magazine ranked Cyrus 13th on its list of the 100 most influential figures in show business, with annual earnings of $48 million[5]. In the same year, Parade magazine named her the richest teen star, estimating her “market value” at approximately $1 billion[6]. In the 2011 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records, Cyrus was included as the most charted teenage girl, as “Party in the USA” became her 29th song listed on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2009[7]. In April 2013, Maxim magazine hailed her as the world’s sexiest woman[8].

Childhood
She is the daughter of Leticia Finley and Billy Ray Cyrus, a country singer[3]. Her initial names were Destiny Hope (meaning “destiny” and “hope” respectively – because her parents believed she would accomplish great things), but over time her family began calling her “Smiley” because she kept smiling as a child[3]. Eventually “Smiley” was shortened to “Miley”[3].

Miley with her father, Billy Ray, performing during a special Kids’ Inaugural: We Are the Future concert, January 19, 2009
Billy Ray and Leticia had a secret wedding on December 28, 1992, a month after Miley’s birth[9]. This gave the singer three step siblings: Trace and Brandi, Leticia’s children from previous relationships, and Christopher Cody, Billy Ray’s son from a previous relationship. Cyrus adopted Trace and Brandi when they were children and financially supported Christopher, who grew up with his mother in Southern California[9][10]. The couple’s two children, Braison and Noah, were subsequently born. Miley’s godmother is Dolly Parton[11].

Cyrus has always had a close relationship with her grandfather, Democratic Party politician Ronald Ray Cyrus[12]. In response to his death in 2006, she paid tribute to her grandfather on several occasions, including changing her middle name to Ray. According to her father: “A lot of people think that Miley changed her name to Miley Ray because of [me] Billy Ray, but that’s not true. She did it in honor of my dad because the two of them loved each other immensely.”[13]

She grew up on a 500-acre (about 2 km²) farm in Franklin, Tennessee, about an hour from Nashville, and attended Heritage Elementary School[14][15]. In 2005, the family moved to Hollywood. Growing up, Cyrus attended church regularly and wore a purity ring[16].

She had been interested in various arts since childhood, and focused on acting at the age of eight. Her siblings also followed in similar footsteps, with Trace becoming a singer and guitarist for the band Metro Station, Noah an actress, and Brandi a guitarist[17][18].

Heart problems cause Cyrus to frequently experience tachycardia[13].

2001-2005: The beginning of her career
In 2001, when she was eight years old, she moved with her family to Toronto, where her father was involved in the filming of the television series Doc[19]. While there, her father took her to see the play Mamma Mia! at the Royal Alexandra Theatre, and after seeing it, Cyrus declared that she wanted to be an actress[20]. She began taking singing and acting lessons at the Armstrong Acting Studio in Toronto[21]. She made her screen debut with a small role as Kylie in the TV series Doc[3]. In 2003, she appeared as young Ruthie in Tim Burton’s Big Fish[22].

At the age of 11, she learned of a casting call for Hannah Montana, a Disney Channel production about a girl who leads a double life. Although she sent in an application tape for the role of the title character’s best friend, she nevertheless received a call inviting her to audition for the lead role, Chloe Stewart[23]. After recording a new tape and traveling to Hollywood, she learned that she was too young and too short to act in the series[24][24][25]. However, her ability to act and sing at the same time caused producers to contact Cyrus again. Eventually, at the age of 12, she was given the lead role, and the character’s name was changed to Miley Stewart[24].

Leticia Cyrus hired Mitchell Gossett, director of the children’s division of Cunningham Escott Slevin Doherty, which specialized in the promotion and branding of young stars. Gossett arranged auditions for the show and is cited as one of the creators of Miley’s success[26][27]. Leticia heeded Dolly Parton’s advice and, thinking about her daughter’s music career, signed Jason Morey of Morey Management Group, stating that “Dolly said the Moreys are people I can trust and have good morals, which doesn’t happen often in this business.”[28] Leticia also selected business manager Billy Ray to control Miley’s finances. In turn, she herself was responsible for some of the management and decision-making regarding her daughter’s career[28]. Miley continued to study with a private teacher on the set of the television series[29].