Billy Ray Cyrus has confirmed that he is engaged to 34-year-old Australian singer-songwriter Firerose.
The "Achy Breaky Heart" singer, 61, shared the news with People while opening up about their relationship and how it grew over the years. During the interview, Cyrus recalled how he met Firerose 12 years ago while on the set of the Disney Channel series "Hannah Montana," in which Firerose was auditioning for a part.
"I loved doing that show," he said, recalling how he and his late dog Tex would take walks on the set.
"There's a couple old pine trees on the lot that look like Tennessee. Tex and I would go out there in the middle of the day and he'd take care of his business and we'd stretch and I'd think how much I missed Tennessee," Cyrus continued. "On that given day, Firerose came out of the front door. There was almost a moment of, I don't know, recognition. I was like, This girl's a star."
After making their introductions, Cyrus showed Firerose around the set and introduced her to producers and writers for the show. And while Firerose did not get the part, she and Cyrus forged a "solid" friendship. Then, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the pair became songwriting partners.
At the time, Cyrus was experiencing problems in his marriage with Trish. The pair finalized their divorce after almost 30 years of marriage earlier this year but in her filing, Tish said she and Cyrus have not lived together in more than two years, according to People. It was not the first time they had separated he said.
Cyrus first filed for divorce in 2010 but five months later he withdrew his divorce filing. Then, in 2013, Tish filed for divorce. Weeks later however, they announced that they were calling the divorce off and were seeing a marriage counselor to help improve their relationship.
Moving on from their third split "took a lot of prayer. A lot," said Cyrus, who asked Firerose if they could be more than friends.
"There was sickness and death, and hard times," Cyrus said of life during the pandemic. "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."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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