Destiny Hope "Miley"
Cyrus (born November 23, 1992) is an American
actress, singer and songwriter. She is best known for starring on
her show as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel Original
Series, Hannah Montana.
Born in Franklin, Tennessee, a suburb of Nashville, Miley Cyrus attended Heritage Middle School but
now she has a private tutor. She grew up on her parents' farm
outside of Nashville. Cyrus is the daughter
of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus and Leticia "Tish" Cyrus, and the
granddaughter of the late Ron Cyrus and Ruth Ann Cyrus. She has two
elder half-brothers, Christopher Cody and Trace, the latter being
the vocalist and guitarist of an electronic rock band, Metro Station
in California. She also has an elder half-sister, Brandi, a younger
brother, Braison, and a younger sister, Noah Lindsey Cyrus, who is
also an actress. She was named Destiny Hope because her parents
believed that she would accomplish great things. Cyrus gained her nickname "Miley" because she
kept smiling ("Smiley") as a youngster. In an interview with USA
Today, Cyrus was quoted as saying her faith
is "the main thing" and is the reason why she works in Hollywood.
When interviewed by Parade, she added that she attends church
regularly with her family. She also has many pets, including horses,
dogs, cats, fish and chickens.
Cyrus became interested in acting at age
nine when the family briefly lived in Toronto, Canada. Her first
acting role was as a guest star on her father's television series
Doc, in which she played a girl named Kylie In 2003, she played
"Young Ruthie" in Tim Burton's Big Fish and was credited as Destiny
Cyrus. She was also featured in Rhonda Vincent's music video for "If
Heartaches Have Wings", and appeared on Colgate Country Showdown
with her father, who was hosting the program.
Cyrus was eleven years old when she
originally auditioned for Disney for the lead as well as the "best
friend" roles Disney Channel executives then judged her to be "too
small", however Miley was persistent in her desire to be part of the
show, so Disney called her back for further auditions when she
turned 12. According to Disney Channel Executive Vice President Gary
Marsh, Cyrus was chosen for Hannah Montana
because of her energetic and lively performance and was seen as a
person who "loves every minute of life", with the "everyday
relatability of Hilary Duff and the stage presence of Shania Twain".
She spent several years to get rid of her Southern accent, but in
the end Disney wanted her to revive it. Later in an unusual twist,
Cyrus had to audition her own father, Billy
Ray Cyrus, to see if he would fit the role as Hannah's dad. Cyrus currently stars in Hannah Montana as the
lead character Miley Stewart, whose alter ego is the pop music
sensation Hannah Montana. Cyrus also
performs in character as Hannah Montana for albums and concerts.
In 2004, Cyrus became a spokesperson for
Daisy Rock Guitars, when she was presented with her first Daisy Rock
guitar— the Stardust Series Acoustic Electric Pink Sparkle. It was
given to her by her parents from her father's Country Music
Television fan meet-and-greet when she was twelve years old.
On June 22, 2006, a performance of a Hannah Montana concert
(featuring Cyrus as Hannah Montana) at
Disney's Typhoon Lagoon in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida was
recorded for the Disney Channel. Cyrus
spent the rest of 2006 opening for The Cheetah Girls on 20 dates of
their 39-city tour. Cyrus also appeared in
the Disney Channel Hannah Montana promotion, "Hannah Montana's
Backstage Secrets", in which she portrays Hannah Montana in a
fictional interview set in the show's canon.
Walt Disney Records released the Hannah Montana soundtrack on
October 24, 2006. The soundtrack included eight of the songs that
Cyrus performed as Hannah Montana. Cyrus also signed a four-album major record deal
with Hollywood Records for her own albums.
Cyrus is good friends with fellow Hannah
Montana co-stars Emily Osment and Mitchel Musso, often texting and
conference calling each other during busy days. Miley Cyrus also taught Emily Osment how to play the
guitar and Osment taught Cyrus how to knit.
She is also friends with the stars of the highly successful TV movie
High School Musical, including Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale.
Cyrus had a brief cameo in High School
Musical 2 credited as "Girl at Pool", where she danced in front of
the pool wearing a yellow baby doll top before the end credits.
Cyrus performed as Hannah Montana at the
Walt Disney Christmas Parade on December 25, 2006, singing her
version of the holiday classic "Rockin' Around the Christmas
Tree."
In June 26, 2007, exactly eight months after the release of the
first soundtrack, Cyrus released a double
album, Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus.
The first disc served as the second Hannah Montana soundtrack, while
the second disc was Cyrus' debut album as
herself. She co-wrote, credited as "Destiny Hope Cyrus", eight of the ten songs.
While attending the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
premiere, Cyrus stated that they are
working on ideas for a Hannah Montana movie. The feature-length film
is to be produced by Cyrus's both on and
off-screen dad, Billy Ray Cyrus.
Disney released a Hannah Montana clothing collection in late
summer. Cyrus helped to design some of the
pieces from the collection. "It's not a costume. A tween girl isn't
doing dress-up, they want to look like they could be Hannah
Montana's friend. This is a fashion line."
Walt Disney Records has announced that Cyrus will be performing both as herself and in
character as Hannah Montana on a 54-date North American Best of Both
Worlds Tour starting October 18, 2007 in St. Louis, Missouri and
ending January 9, 2008 in Albany, New York. The Jonas Brothers will
be the opening act. Tour tickets for each date have been selling out
in record time after they have gone on sale disappointing large
numbers of fans.