"My mom is my hero" — Miley Cyrus opens up about her feelings towards her mother Tish and father Billy Cyrus

American singer and actress Miley Cyrus recently opened up about how her parents, Tish and Billy Ray Cyrus, raised her. She also praised her mother for being her hero.

On Wednesday, June 12, the 31-year-old appeared in the newest episode of David Letterman's Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. Miley spoke about how she "inherited" several attributes from her dad's personality, including narcissism and ideas as an artist. She then complimented her mother, saying:

"So I think a lot of his perspective on reality and on life, I've inherited from him, more so than the way that I was raised — which really, my mom raised me. Honestly, my mom is my hero, and my father... I'm grateful for his genes. My dad has great hair and I got that."

The singer's comments followed the recent rumors of a rift in the Cyrus family stemming from Tish and Billy Ray’s 2022 split.

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Miley Cyrus addresses estrangement with father Billy Ray Cyrus

Miley Cyrus was born on November 1992 in Franklin, Tennessee, United States to parents, Billy Ray Cyrus and Tish Cyrus. The former couple tied the knot on December 28, 2003, and share five children together: Brandi, Trace, Miley, Braison, and Noah.

In April 2022, Billy and Tish filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. The separation followed speculations from media and fans that the relationship between singers Billy Ray Cyrus and Miley Cyrus was strained, as per Billboard.

However, on Wednesday, the Hannah Montana actress appeared on the Netflix show My Next Guest Needs No Introduction and clarified the situation.

Host David Letterman asked the singer point-blank if "any estrangement" existed with her father or if it was "just the way things are played?" Miley Cyrus responded by agreeing and then praising her parents:

"Yeah. I think what is so beautiful is that my parents, they served their children. My parents served us and sacrificed so much for us. Anything we dreamed of, they made possible. He has a relationship and a foot on the ground to the real and to nature and he always did, even when he was super famous. I’m grateful for being able to watch him ahead of me."

Billy Ray Cyrus began his music career in 1992 by recording and writing music for his debut album, Some Gave All. He had established a significantly popular career by the time Miley Cyrus released her pop-rock albums Meet Miley Cyrus in 2007 and Breakout in 2008. The singer opened up about what she inherited from her father, sharing:

"He's almost given me this map. And there's a map of what to do and what not to do, and he's guided me on both. I also inherited the narcissism from my father. Without my dad, I mean, not just literally I wouldn't be sitting in this chair. I wouldn't exist, but I would not, who I am as a person, it wouldn't exist."

She added that Billy "as a creative and as an artist in the way that his brain works," has always made her feel safer "in my own mind because we're very similar in our ideas."

Both Billy Ray Cyrus and Tish have since moved on from their separation. Miley Cyrus's mother married Australian actor Dominic Purcell in August 2023 while Billy walked down the aisle with singer Firerose in October 2023.

However, the 62-year-old filed to divorce from Firerose this week, and cited “irreconcilable differences” and “inappropriate marital conduct”, according to court documents. They were married for seven months and he is seeking an annulment on the grounds of fraud, as per People.