The Cyruses have become one of the most successful families in Hollywood, but their path to fame
and glory has been plagued by scandal.
From start-and-stop divorces, to the truth about that Disney show, here are the secrets
the family tried to hide.
Long lost sibling
Miley Cyrus was born the same year Billy Ray Cyrus' smash hit "Achy Breaky Heart" went
platinum.
But something else happened in '92 as well.
Christopher Cody Cyrus, Miley's half-brother, was born eight months earlier than his famous
sibling.
His mother is Kristin Luckey, who according to the Mirror, had a "brief relationship"
with Billy Ray "when she was a waitress in South Carolina."
Though Billy Ray never tried to hide Christopher, he allegedly didn't have much of a role in
the boy's life.
Luckey says, "Chris reaches out to have a relationship but it's been months since they
engaged."
And Christopher has nothin' but love for his half-sis, Miley, saying, "She's the same now
as she was before all this fame.
She's still my goofy sister."
Marital troubles
To say that Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus' marriage has been filled with ups and downs would be
an understatement.
The first cracks appeared in 2010 when Billy Ray filed for divorce after 17 years of marriage.
But then, Billy Ray called off the divorce just five months later.
And three years after the almost-divorce, the couple called it quits again.
One month after filing the second time, the couple announced on Instagram that they had,
again, reconciled.
According to People, they said, "We both woke up and realized we love each other and decided
we want to stay together.
We both went into couples therapy something we haven't done in 22 years of being together,
and it's brought us closer together and really opened up our communication in amazing ways."
So what was going on?
In 2010, Us Weekly published a bombshell report alleging that Billy Ray had filed for divorce
after learning that Tish had an affair with Poison frontman Bret Michaels.
But Michaels flat-out denied the report on Fox & Friends, saying, "It started out with
me and Miley simply working on a song together.
Her mom, Tish, likes 'Every Rose Has Its Thorn,' the first concert Miley ever saw was Poison,
and so they wanted to remake it for the new record."
According to Michaels, case closed.
Disney downer
About a month or so before he revealed that he was calling off his divorce, Billy Ray
slammed Hannah Montana, the Disney Channel series that made Miley a superstar, in GQ,
saying, "I'll tell you right now — the damn show destroyed my family."
Billy Ray added that the show's fourth and final season was an all-out disaster.
He said, "I was going to work every single day knowing that my family had fallen apart,
but yet I had to sit in front of that camera."
Billy Ray later clarified those remarks on Good Morning America, admitting that his messy
divorce had gotten the best of him, and saying, "I love Hannah Montana.
I love Disney.
I wouldn't change anything."
Two faced
During her Hannah Montana days, Miley seemed to fit the squeaky-clean Disney brand, but
behind the scenes, she was growing up like a lot of American teenagers: trying everything
from underage drinking to hitting a bong.
She expressed remorse over the bong incident, telling Marie Claire, "For me, it was a bad
decision, because of my fans and because of what I stand for," but there were times when
Miley said her public image was a blatant misrepresentation of her true self.
She once claimed on Total Request Live that she wasn't sure if she'd ever get a tattoo.
She later told MTV:
"I was lying.
I always knew I was gonna get tattoos."
And she sure did.
Underage affair
Miley's teenage years garnered a ton of press coverage, but there's one item that often
gets overlooked: her relationship with underwear model and country musician Justin Gaston.
At the time, Gaston was 20 and Miley was just 15.
At one point, Billy Ray attempted to downplay the relationship rumors, telling Us Weekly,
"They are great friends, and they make a good team.
They write a lot of songs together, and they sing — it's incredible."
But Miley had already spilled the beans in a radio interview with Ryan Seacrest.
When asked if they were dating, she didn't say no.
"So are you going out with Justin?"
"Maybe, maybe not"
"He's a really great Christian guy which is really awesome.
I'm really gushing right now!"
Fame game
In his interview with Good Morning America Billy Ray clarified comments in which he seemingly
expressed concern that Miley might follow the same tragic path as Kurt Cobain.
Billy Ray had previously told GQ, "Kurt was one of those guys.
That's why I'm concerned about Miley.
I think that his world was just spinning so fast and he had so many people around him
that didn't help him."
He then told GMA:
"What I meant to say, and what I hope I said, was fame can be a dangerous animal.
And it's a delicate thing."
The dark side
Miley has admitted that the grueling process of filming Hannah Montana, as well as growing
up in the spotlight, had a negative impact on her mind and body.
She told Marie Claire, "From the time I was 11, it was, 'You're a pop star!
That means you have to be blonde, and you have to have long hair, and you have to put
on some glittery tight thing.
Meanwhile, I'm this fragile little girl playing a 16-year-old in a wig and a ton of makeup...I
was made to look like someone that I wasn't, which probably caused some body dysmorphia
because I had been made pretty every day for so long, and then when I wasn't on that show,
it was like, Who the f**k am I?"
Miley also admitted that she experienced anxiety, saying, "I would have anxiety attacks.
I'd get hot flashes, feel like I was about to pass out or throw up.
It would happen a lot before shows, and I'd have to cancel."
Mini Miley
As if one Cyrus daughter-celeb wasn't enough, it now appears that Miley's younger sister
Noah, who turned 17 in 2017, is poised to create some controversy of her own.
According to the Mirror, she's releasing music about smoking cigarettes and getting drunk,
wearing scandalous outfits on the red carpet, and naming her album NC-17.
Those might be just a few reasons Miley has recently expressed some big-sister concerns
as Noah prepares to enter Hollywood.
Miley told ABC News, "I hope people continue to be really sweet to her, and compassionate
and respectful of her.
And just don't judge her and don't be too harsh on her.
Because I'm not worried about her, it's everyone else that can be really hateful and harsh
towards her."
Noah's big sis added, "I want her to grow up and be able to really feel confident and
not feel insecure about how anyone's ever made her feel."
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