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Miley Cyrus will ring in 2023 with Dolly Parton by her side for NBC’s annual New Year’s Eve special.
The pop star broke the news with a cute Instagram post, her arms wrapped around her famous godmother over the caption, “#NewYearNewCohost @dollyparton.” In the photo, Cyrus wears a sleek navy blue cocktail dress with her blond tresses parted in the middle while Parton stuns in a metallic gold dress of her own.
NBC also shared a fun promotional video of Cyrus and Parton on the network’s official Instagram page, in which the former states, “Miley’s New Year’s Eve party is about getting glamorous and dressing your best.”
“Well, we do that every day — don’t we, Miley?” Parton chimes in, to which her goddaughter replies, “You taught me well” before their duet version of “Jolene” kicks in.
Set to air Dec. 31 live from Miami, the sophomore outing of Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party will mark the second straight year Cyrus has lorded over NBC’s year-end festivities. Last year, she co-hosted the special alongside Pete Davidson with performances by Anitta, Billie Joe Armstrong, Jack Harlow, Brandi Carlile, Saweetie, 24kGoldn and more.
For her part, Parton will be coming off having been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame‘s Class of 2022 as well as receiving an award from $100 million from Amazon’s Jeff Bezos to distribute to the charities and causes of her choice.
Get a first look at Cyrus and Parton as New Year’s Eve co-hosts below.
Kenny Chesney will revisit some of the tour markets that marked the early days of his career when he launches his 2023 I Go Back Tour. The outing will kick off on March 25 at State College, Pennsylvania’s Bryce Jordan Center the first of 21 dates that will criss-cross the country, including stops in Lexington, Kentucky; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Lincoln, Nebraska and more.
“When a year is as hot and alive as 2022 was, you don’t want to try to recapture that magic. Or maybe it’s me,” Chesney said via a statement. “I still have the sounds of diesel engines and No Shoes Nation in my head – and that made me ask, ‘What else could I do? What would be something that would put me every bit as much in the music and give No Shoes Nation another reason to believe? How can we reach those people who might not come to stadium shows, who live a little off the obvious path, but who love this music every bit as much… “And that’s when it hit me: ‘I Go Back.’ That song is about holding all those things that shaped you very close, recognizing how special they are – and keeping them alive any way you can. So, I decided that rather than just go repeat what we did, I wanted to take this band and these songs to a lot of the cities we played on our way up! Let’s call the tour I Go Back – and do just that.”
Joining Chesney will be fellow Knoxville, Tennessee, native and country artist Kelsea Ballerini. Ballerini and Chesney previously earned a No. 1 Billboard Country Airplay hit with their 2021 collaboration on “half of my hometown,” which also won CMA Awards honors for video of the year and musical event of the year.
“Kelsea understands everything about where I come from, because she’s from there, too,” Chesney said in his statement. “She knows how hard it is to leave, how much you miss all those things that make you who you are… but also how the only way to chase the kind of dream she has is to do just that. It’s a tough call when you love home the way we both do, but for kids like us, there was never really a choice. When she texted me to sing on the song she’d written with some of our friends, I said, ‘Let me hear it,’ knowing she knew everything about who I was. As soon as I heard that first verse, I was in. And I have been one of Kelsea’s biggest fans ever since. She’s a writer, a girl who sings from her heart and isn’t afraid to honor where she comes from. To me, there was no other choice for this tour.”
“Music has taken me so many incredible places,” Ballerini added. “Around the world, singing with some of my heroes in pop, alternative and contemporary music, but singing with Kenny is going home. He was the only voice I heard on ‘half of my hometown,’ and when he comes in, it’s just like hitting the Knoxville city limits. So to be able to go out to those cities like the place he and I grew up with an artist who’s accomplished what he has, it’s a lot like going home.”
See the full I Go Back Tour dates below:
March 25: State College, PA @ Bryce Jordan CenterMarch 30: Wichita, KS @ INTRUST Bank ArenaApril 1: Oklahoma City, OK @ Paycom CenterApril 6: Uncasville, CT @ Mohegan Sun ArenaApril 8: Wilkes-Barre Township, PA @ Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey PlazaApril 12: Birmingham, AL @ Legacy Arena at the BJCCApril 14: Jacksonville, FL @ Daily’s Place AmphitheaterApril 16: Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Tortuga*April 25: Lexington, KY @ Rupp ArenaApril 27: Greenville, SC @ Bon Secours Wellness ArenaApril 29: Greensboro, NC @ Greensboro ColiseumMay 4: Moline, IL @ Vibrant Arena at The MarkMay 6: Grand Rapids, MI @ Van Andel ArenaMay 9: Grand Forks, ND @ The Alerus CenterMay 11: Sioux Falls, SD @ Denny Sanford Premier CenterMay 13: Lincoln, NE @ Pinnacle Bank ArenaMay 18: Fort Wayne, IN @ Allen County War Memorial ColiseumMay 20: Evansville, IN @ Ford CenterMay 25: Charleston, SC @ Credit One StadiumMay 27: Orange Beach, AL@ The WharfJuly 22: Des Moines, IA @ Hy-Vee Indy Race**previously announced
Lauren Alaina is officially engaged to boyfriend Cam Arnold, the country singer revealed to fans this weekend.
Alaina first made the news public onstage at the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday night (Nov. 19).
“BRIDE be dang’d, y’all,” Alaina, who shifted over to Big Loud Records in July, wrote on Instagram on Sunday. “My best friend, @arnold.cam, asked me to marry him, and I announced it at my favorite place in the world, @opry.”
She added, “I didn’t know happiness and excitement like this existed. I can’t wait to be Mrs. Cameron Scott Arnold.”
In an interview with People, Alaina said of her now-fiancé, “He keeps me grounded and gives me a piece of a normal everyday life that I didn’t have before him. We have been together for two and a half years, and we are just getting started.”
“So happy for you, @laurenalaina,” the Grand Ole Opry account commented on Alaina’s post. “We love you!!!”
“Lucky guy! Super happy for y’all,” Jake Owen wrote in the comments.
“Congrats!!!” Little Big Town commented, while Carly Pearce gushed, “OMG YES SO HAPPY.”
See Alaina’s engagement announcement and happy couple photos on Instagram.
Stagecoach’s iconic Palomino Stage is getting the star treatment in 2023 with scheduled performances from Tyler Childers, Bryan Adams, Melissa Etheridge and more. The Palomino Stage, which offers an alternative sound to the main stage acts, will also feature sets from ZZ Top, Marty Stuart, Turnpike Troubadours and Nikki Lane, among others.
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Stagecoach festival will take place from April 28-30 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif., following two weekends of Coachella on the same grounds. Ian Munsick, Keb’ Mo’, Valerie June, Sierra Ferrell, Jaime Wyatt, Sammy Kershaw and more will also take the Palomino Stage in 2023.
The country festival celebrates its 15th anniversary with a Palomino Stage that rivals previous years. The Palomino Stage has welcomed Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, George Jones, John Prine, Jerry Lee Lewis, Smokey Robinson, Emmylou Harris, Glen Campbell, Kenny Rogers, Charley Pride, Tom Jones and Dwight Yoakam as well as today’s hottest, award-winning talent including Sturgill Simpson, Cody Jinks, Zach Bryan, Cody Johnson, Colter Wall, Charley Crockett, Margo Price and more over the years.
The 2023 edition of Stagecoach will also see headlining performances from superstars Luke Bryan, Kane Brown and Chris Stapleton. Additional artists on the Mane Stage include Brooks & Dunn, Jon Pardi, Old Dominion, Riley Green, Lainey Wilson, Gabby Barrett, Parker McCollum, BRELAND, Elle King, Morgan Wade, Niko Moon and Kameron Marlowe.
Three-day passes for the country festival begin at $389 with VIP, camping and parking passes also available. New to this year’s festival is the Saloon pass, which offers fans access to standing room only areas on both sides of the Corral and access to the Rhinestone & Cowboy Saloons featuring specialty food and drink vendors, air-conditioned restrooms, shaded seating areas, and full bars. For more information on tickets and lineup, head here.
First Country is a compilation of the best new country songs, videos & albums that dropped this week.
Dierks Bentley with Billy Strings, “High Note”
Dierks Bentley teams with arena-touring bluegrasser Billy Strings for this ode to the mood-elevating aspects of bluegrass and weed, while the airy production builds into an all-in jam session with the addition of bluegrass legends Jerry Douglas, Sam Bush and Bryan Sutton. The song is the first from Bentley’s upcoming album, set to arrive next year. Bentley, of course, is no stranger to the bluegrass/folk world, having released his own bluegrass-tinted album Up on the Ridge, in 2010.
Billy Strings, Me/And/Dad
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Strings has taken the bluegrass and Americana Music worlds by storm in recent years. Today, he releases Me/And/Dad, his first album with his father, Terry Barber. This 14-track mix of bluegrass and country classics the two have played together for years, including The Carter Family’s “The Wandering Boy,” George Jones’ “Life to Go,” and Doc Watson’s “Way Downtown.” Top-notch, wooly bluegrass picking wraps around distinct, family harmonies throughout the album.
Granger Smith, Moonrise
“Backroad Song” singer Smith is set to make his acting debut in the movie Moonrise on Dec. 15, but today he surprised fans today by dropping a 12-song album by the same name. Smith wrote or co-wrote every song on the album and every song will be featured in the movie. The songs contained here convey a range of life experiences, love and loss (“Something to Go On,” “Black Suit”) and the values his family is working to build (“This House”).
Nate Smith, “Wreckage”
Smith has been burning up Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart with his hard-charging song “Whiskey on You,” but with his latest, he proves he can just as deftly communicate a tender, vulnerable ballad. “When everyone else saw baggage/ you loved what no one could,” he sings. Smith will release his debut, self-titled album on Feb. 17.
Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives, “Country Star”
Stuart and his fabulous band come with a full-throttle blast of power from the first note, and refuse to let up, as they detail a vivid portrait of fame and life on the road. The group’s superior body of work will be honored next week, when they are inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame on Nov. 22.
Jason Nix, “Happy Accidents”
Nix is known for his writing contributions to Lainey Wilson’s No. 1 Country Airplay hit “Things a Man Oughta Know,” but he proves he’s got a winning vocal of his own here. His sometimes-lover “lives on gin, coffee and compliments,” and he pledges that if she takes him back again, “I’ll take the place the lonely’s always been.” A sturdy outing from an ace singer-songwriter.
Ashley Cooke, “Running Back”
Ashley Cooke is missing the teenage romance she had with the high school running back, even years after the breakup. Written by Cooke and Emily Weisband, this cooly moody track vibrates with a sleek pop sheen.
Bri Bagwell, Red or Green
Bagwell collects a few previously-released holiday singles for this four-track EP, along with a previously unreleased acoustic cover of the Elvis Presley classic “Blue Christmas,” infusing it with her smooth, New Mexico twang. A worthy collection to get anyone into a more relaxed holiday mood.
Brian Kelley, “Florida Strong”
Kelley, a native of the Sunshine State, shows his support for those impacted by natural disasters, with all of the royalties being split between the American Red Cross and the Florida Disaster Fund to help support hurricane relief. Written by Kelley, with production by Kelley with Kaitlin Owen, the track sails along pleasantly, leading up to a spoken-word section with Kelley reciting words of resilience and hope.
With songs like “Five More Minutes” and “This Is It,” Scotty McCreery has taken fans with him on his journey from dating his now-wife Gabi to the couple’s mountaintop engagement in 2017 to their wedding in North Carolina a year later. Now, they are settling into their new roles as parents. On Oct. 24, the couple welcomed their first child, son Merrick Avery McCreery (who goes by Avery).
“He’s awesome. He is healthy,” McCreery tells Billboard. “It’s been so cool just to watch him grow and it’s only been three weeks and we’re just getting started, but it’s been the joy of my life. It’s been incredible, and also just seeing Gabi be a mom—she’s worked so hard for nine months and is still crushing it. It’s been cool getting to do this together and just be there for him.”
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This week, McCreery released the music video for “It Matters to Her,” directed by Jeff Ray, who has helmed previous McCreery videos including “Five More Minutes” and “Damn Strait.” The video clip is essentially a digital scrapbook of the McCreerys’ journey to welcoming their son, with footage of the day Gabi found out she was pregnant (Feb. 25), as well as ultrasound appointments, painting the baby’s nursery and playing music for Avery in utero.
“I thought it would be a perfect thing to showcase our journey, pregnancy and that whole nine-month process. Gabi’s doing the hard work, or course, and it’s my job to help her and be there for her and just getting the house ready and getting ourselves ready, the dog ready, everything ready for Avery. The video came out better than I could have imagined. I’m excited for Avery to watch the video a few years from now and see what he thinks.”
As for which parent little Avery resembles at the moment, McCreery says, “I think everybody’s saying he looks a lot like me, but I see a little bit of his mama in there, too. And he’s got that little grin, that smile—it’s probably more of a reflex right now than anything, but he does that when he’s sleeping or dreaming but it’s just cute. We are loving every minute with him.”
Among the many baby gifts they have received are Louisiana State University onesies (McCreery’s a fan) and the book Goodnight Moon from McCreery’s family. “I remember that book being read to me when I was growing up,” McCreery recalls.
Given his own career in music which started in his teens via American Idol, McCreery says he will “absolutely” support his son if Avery shows a similar propensity for music.
“Music did so much for me even before I did it professionally. It was a passion of mine and it’ll always be a part of me. I think it’s huge for development, the arts and getting to use that creative side of your brain. I’ll encourage the heck out of Avery to do whatever he wants, but if it’s music, arts or anything, I hope he crushes it and does what he wants to do.”
While enjoying time at home with his newly expanded family, McCreery is also following up his five consecutive Billboard Country Airplay No. 1 hits (including the three-week No. 1 “Damn Strait”) with the deluxe edition of his album Same Truck, which Triple Tigers releases today (Nov. 18), featuring six additional tracks.
McCreery’s approach to this album was different than his previous works, given that he had nearly a full album ready to go prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The world shuts down and we had all this time to write and record more songs.” McCreery says. “Those newer songs are what made the main Same Truck album, but then we had all these other songs already recorded and mastered. So instead of going back in and recording, we already had it. And I was kind of in the same creative mindset when I was writing those songs as I was with the newer songs, so it flowed really nicely and it feels like one cohesive project.”
After taking parental leave, McCreery returns to the road December, and he says touring will look different in the coming months and years.
“I’ve kind of had the same system for touring for the past 10 years, so it’s gonna come as a big shock, but in all the best ways. Next year, we are bringing out a baby bus, so Avery and Gabi will be out there, and [the couple’s yellow Labrador] Moose will be out there. It’s a family affair. And honestly, even before, when just Gabi was be out there, it always made the road better. I can be a hermit and stay on the bus all day, but when she’s out there, she’s like, ‘Let’s go hiking, let’s go see this.’”
In addition to touring, McCreery says he hopes to return to the studio early next year.
“I’m definitely more of an album cycle writer than a non-stop writer,” he says. “We are getting into that new phase of once the deluxe album is out, we’re writing for the next project. It’s exciting. It’s a new time for me. Life has changed dramatically over the last few weeks, so I got a lot of stuff to write about!”
And yes, McCreery says the next album could very well include a musical ode to Avery.
“I’ve already written a few for him, before he was born. But I would imagine there’s a song or two about little Avery on the next album,” he says.
Nearly a year after appearing on the December 2021-dated Billboard’s Top TV Songs chart, powered by Tunefind, and after being heard in Paramount’s Yellowstone, Colter Wall’s “Sleeping on the Blacktop” takes the top spot of the October 2022 survey due to an appearance in Apple TV+’s Bad Sisters.
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Rankings for the Top TV Songs chart are based on song and show data provided by Tunefind and ranked using a formula blending that data with sales and streaming information tracked by Luminate during the corresponding period of October 2022.
“Blacktop,” from Wall’s 2015 album Imaginary Appalachia, originally ranked at No. 2 in December 2021 thanks to its Yellowstone sync. It returns at No. 1 after being heard in Bad Sisters’ season one finale, which aired Oct. 14.
In October 2022, the song earned 7.4 million official on-demand U.S. streams and 2,000 downloads, according to Luminate.
“Wall” is joined by one other song from Bad Sisters’ season finale on Top TV Songs: First Aid Kit’s “My Silver Lining,” at No. 4, with 1.2 million streams and 1,000 downloads.
The highest non-Bad Sisters entry comes from Thunderstorm Artis, whose “Stronger” arrives at No. 2 after being heard in the 19th season premiere of ABC’s long-running Grey’s Anatomy.
“Stronger” snagged 379,000 streams and 1,000 downloads in October 2022.
See the full top 10 below.
Rank, Song, Artist, Show (Network)1. “Sleeping on the Blacktop,” Colter Wall, Bad Sisters (Apple TV+)2. “Stronger,” Thunderstorm Artis, Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)3. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” Lauryn Hill, From Scratch (Netflix)4. “My Silver Lining,” First Aid Kit, Bad Sisters (Apple TV+)5. “Fields of Gold,” Ava Cassidy, CSI: Miami (CBS)6. “Whiplash,” The Night Lands, Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)7. “Angela,” Bob James, Rick and Morty (Cartoon Network)8. “The Crown of Jaehaerys,” Ramin Djawadi, House of the Dragon (HBO)9. “Per favore,” Nyv, From Scratch (Netflix)10. “Love Is Stronger Than Pride,” Sade, Atlanta (FX)
Shania Twain will receive the Music Icon award at the 2022 People’s Choice Awards, which are set to air on NBC and E! on Tuesday, Dec. 6, at 9 p.m. ET/PT from the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif.
Christina Aguilera was the inaugural recipient of this honor last year. As previously announced, another top music star, Lizzo, is slated to receive this year’s People’s Champion Award, while actor and budding director Ryan Reynolds will receive the People’s Icon Award.
In addition to receiving the award, Twain will perform a medley of her greatest hits as well as her new song “Waking Up Dreaming” from her forthcoming sixth album Queen of Me, which is set for release on Feb. 3, 2023. This will mark her first appearance on the PCAs stage since 2005, when she took home the award for favorite country female singer.
“I’m so incredibly honored to be named ‘Music Icon,’” Twain said in a statement. “I have some of the greatest fans in the world. They have supported me since the early days, and it’s their love and passion that keeps me going. I’m thrilled to go back on tour and bring my new music and fan favorites to them, and what better way to start than at the People’s Choice Awards!”
“Live from E!: The 2022 People’s Choice Awards” will kick off the night with a red carpet special at 7 p.m. ET/PT on E!
The 2022 People’s Choice Awards and “Live From E!: The 2022 People’s Choice Awards” are both produced by Den of Thieves with executive producers Jesse Ignjatovic, Evan Prager and Barb Bialkowski.
When the slate of Grammy nominees was announced on Tuesday (Nov. 15), Big Machine Music-signed songwriter Laura Veltz was among the inaugural class of nominees in the newly minted songwriter of the year (non-classical) category, nominated alongside Amy Allen, Nija Charles, Tobias Jesso Jr. and The-Dream.
Veltz’s multifarious songwriting talents cinched the nomination following her contributions to a lengthy list of songs in country and pop circles, including songs with Maren Morris (“Background Music,” “Humble Quest”), Demi Lovato (“29,” “Feed”) and Ingrid Andress (“Pain”). Veltz has previously been nominated a Grammy three times, all of them in the best country song category, for her work on Morris’ “The Bones” and “Better Than We Found It,” as well as Dan + Shay’s “Speechless.”
But to be nominated in the inaugural year of an all-genre category dedicated to songwriters is another thing entirely, Veltz says. “I’m still sort of in shock about the whole thing, just because of its historical nature,” she explains. “And I’m friends with a lot of the people who made this category happen, and I know a lot of people work so hard to make sure songwriters are recognized this way — so it’s so much beyond an honor.”
Fittingly, Veltz says she was entering a writing session in Nashville with co-writer Alyssa Vanderheym when she learned of her nomination.
“I started getting so many text messages that just said, ‘Congratulations!’ and it took me a full three minutes to get the tea of what I actually got. Then I just fell to the ground. I was so shocked. [Alyssa] was getting like 50,000 phone calls, just like I was, so our co-writer was like, ‘You guys should just go celebrate.’ So we did, we bailed on the session and celebrated and I went home and hugged my husband and all that stuff. It was so special.”
Below, Veltz talks with Billboard not only about the meaning the nomination holds for her, but how she hopes the songwriter of the year (non-classical) Grammy category serves as a harbinger for the songwriter advocacy being done on Capitol Hill.
What does this nomination mean to you, personally — as it is recognizing an overall body of work from a songwriter, instead of a specific song or songs on a specific album?
It is so centralized to my life experience — but it’s weird having my name in the list. I’ve been nominated for Grammys before, but it’s so tough within the wordage that it’s not as recognizable. It’s just absolutely bizarre to know that I moved around a lot as a kid, just thinking about all the high schools I’ve ever been to and all the churches I went to and everyone I’ve ever known. It’s just a weird thing to have my name associated with something like this.
You don’t sign up for that as a songwriter, typically, because we purposefully put ourselves behind the scenes. The fact that my name is associated with a body of work… it really is humbling, because it’s so different.
What does it mean for the songwriter community as a whole to be recognized with their own category at the Grammys?
It’s just such a change for my community, and such a change for the industry at large to have this on the ballot. It’s wild, too, because it’s such a community-driven thing. I’m watching my friends nominated in song categories. The song [of the year] nominations were really all we had for a really long time. Then people like Ross Golan and so many others expanded it to having a larger body of work on an album, that we suddenly are credited in that way [for the album of the year category].
So seeing all these people getting these nominations and now the crown jewel of it — having its own very own category — it’s very humbling and beautiful. Then, when it comes to things in on Capitol Hill and such, the fact that this might begin a new era where the recognition of the beginning of music — which is in fact the writing of a song — the fact that that might be a little bit more seen might lead to it being a little bit more valued.
“Background Music” is one of the songs you are being recognized for, which you wrote with Maren Morris and Jimmy Robbins.
As with me, Maren is continually willing to gut punch a song — and [get into] talking about the passing of time, talking about mortality and what we leave behind, and the truth that in a hundred years our names will be virtually forgotten no matter how dominant we are as creators. Just to write to that directly was so f–king fun. It sounds dark, but it really kinda helped me to live in the moment. And the fact that this was her idea, of “Background Music.”
My favorite lyric in the song is “Not everybody gets to leave a souvenir.” That is just the most true statement, and it makes being a songwriter, or any kind of creator… you just feel so lucky that you get to live a little longer, so to speak, than the average person, through such a gift. I’ve written so many songs with Maren, but I think that was the first time that we collectively made ourselves cry. All three of us were like, “Wow.”
Your work with Demi Lovato, especially on songs like “29,” is also being recognized.
The 13 songs that Demi and I wrote together [for Lovato’s album Holy Fvck] are some of my absolute most proud moments as a creator. Her willingness to say the uncomfortable thing and heal out loud. I am so proud of Holy Fvck. Every single song has a sting and a sweetness of just truth.
And “29” in particular — because the value of what you do as a songwriter, it ebbs and flows. Sometimes you earn a No. 1, sometimes you just reach the right person that needed to hear what you wrote. And this song falls under that feeling of “there are a group of people that needed to hear this song.” Most of them are young women. And just the idea that you can unplug the power of feeling of “Oh, he thinks I’m mature for my age.” I used to say that s–t. I used to feel that s–t, and I used to take it as a compliment. And I feel like we wrote a song that unplugged the power of those words. You are not mature for your age, they’re predators, and you need space to be a kid.
I love TikTok, and watching all of the thousands of women who use “29” as a reality check for their own dating history. Then the idea that those women will have daughters, then those daughters will have daughters. I can’t even wrap my head around the power of that song, by way of butterfly effect. We just decided to address something difficult. We said something difficult, we said it in the most eloquent way, and in a commercial way that it wasn’t in innuendo, it was clear as crystal. I feel like that is such a win as a songwriter.
Is there anything else you want to add about the songwriter of the year nomination?
I truly feel that the value of what a songwriter is could very well go extinct if we don’t put some actual value on what it is to write a song. I feel like it’s something that can just go unnoticed so many jobs that just go unnoticed. Then, when somebody goes on strike, you realize, ‘Oh, we do need those people.’ I feel like music would change entirely if it wasn’t appreciating the poets in the back of the classroom who just want to tell stories. We were meant to tell stories. Many of us are just born to tell stories and to not have the music medium for that — we’ll find our way because we’re resilient and because honestly, nothing in this world could stop us from telling these stories.
But [also], I just feel the gratitude that this category is now in play. I imagine the future, and it’s realizing that things need to change. I’m gonna be fine. I caught the right era. But the next generation of songwriters will literally go away. There’s no way it’s sustainable. Kids that are writing songs that are getting streamed millions of times, but they can’t keep their lights on at home — that’s not okay. I’m just really grateful that this category is in play and I’m really hoping that it traces itself backwards to how songwriters are paid. It needs to be addressed.
Following weeks of speculation by fans, “Old Town Road” singer Billy Ray Cyrus, 61, has confirmed that he is engaged to wed Australian singer-songwriter Firerose. Rumors swirled last month after both Cyrus and Firerose posted photos on social media that depicted Firerose wearing what looked like an engagement ring.
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Cyrus and Firerose confirmed the engagement to People, noting that Firerose moved into Cyrus’s Tennessee home during the summer. Cyrus proposed in August.
Firerose said that there was no traditional proposal — no ring or getting down on one knee.
“Billy looked at me and said, ‘Do you, do you wanna marry me?’ And I was just like, ‘Of course I do. I love you.’ He said, ‘I love you. I wanna make this official. I wanna be with you forever.’” Firerose later selected a diamond and designed her ring.
Cyrus and Firerose first met on the set of the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana 12 years ago and stayed in touch over the years.
“Our friendship was so solid over the years,” Firerose told People.
During the early days of the pandemic, they began writing songs together and in July 2021, they released the song “New Day.”
“She plays all of her own instruments and writes her own songs. We began sharing music, and it just evolved,” Cyrus said.
“Billy confided in me a lot of what was going on in his life,” Firerose added. “I was just the best friend I could possibly be, supporting him.”
“There was sickness and death, and hard times,” Cyrus said of how the pandemic impacted his life. “All of the sudden, the life that I’ve always known as a touring artist didn’t exist anymore. A moment of so much change. And at the same time, Firerose, who had been such a light of positivity, such a best friend. And then when we began sharing the music, it just evolved more into, as musical soulmates, to soulmates, happy, pure love that to me, I didn’t know could exist. Again, we’re musicians, first and foremost, both of us. And we found this harmony, and this rhythm, this melody to life.”
The new relationship follows Cyrus’s split from his ex-wife, Tish, in April, after three decades of marriage. Tish placed the divorce filing, citing “irreconcilable differences” as the cause. TMZ reported that according to court documents, the couple had been living apart for the past two years.
Billy Ray and Tish later provided a statement to People, saying, “It is after 30 years, five amazing children and a lifetime of memories, we have decided to go our separate ways — not with sadness, but with love in our hearts,” the statement read. “We have grown up together, raised a family we can be so proud of, and it is now time to create our own paths. We will always be family and look forward to a continued and loving shared experience as friends and parents. We have not come to this decision lightly or quickly but with so much going on in the world, we wanted to provide some clarity and closure, so we can remain focused on what is important…With Love and Hope… Tish and Billy Ray Cyrus.”
