Probably, young viewers don’t know the song “Achy Breaky Heart”, but their parents, surely, remember a hot young man with huge eyes, long hair, and funny dancing moves, who sang wholeheartedly about a woman, who thought “he was not OK”. The performer of this song is an incredibly talented country singer William Ray Cyrus, who today is widely known as “Hannah Montana’s father”.
Mr. Cyrus was born in the Ashland suburb, Kentucky, USA. He is a popular country singer, songwriter, and actor. He starred in several famous films, like “Mulholland Drive” and “Wish You Were Dead” and was nominated for a Grammy Award.
Billy’s childhood was happy and carefree till his parents’ divorce in 1966. His father, Ron Ray Cyrus, was a well-known politician. His mother’s name was Ruth Ann Casto. She passed away on August 11, 2022.
photo instagram / billyraycyrus
The boy started singing at the age of 4. Even then it was obvious, that Billy was absolutely talented. He started an activity in the music industry by singing in a church choir. Around that time the boy – with his dad’s support – started to play the guitar. Ron was a great lover of country music – and he taught his son to love this genre, too.
Cyrus Jr. debuted in the early 1980s as part of his father’s gospel band. After that, the teenager created his own group, named “Sly Dog”. The band performed in the cities and towns of Kentucky. The big break met Miley’s father in Louisville, where he was scouted by The Mercury Records agent. The young prodigy was signed with the label.
In the early 1990s, he released a jokingly simple “Achy Breaky Heart”, which became a massive hit. Being on the wave of his initial success, Billy released his debut album “Some Gave All”, which, probably, became the most popular disk in his entire career. It gained multi-platinum status.
The hard-working musician presented his second album “It Won’t Be The Last” immediately after the release of his debut disk. After that it became a kind of tradition – the singer released a new set of songs almost every year. As for now, he boasts 15 studio albums. The latest one he presented in 2017.
Billy has been married three times. His first marriage to Cindy Smith ended in 1991. He married Tish Cyrus in 1993; they had Miley, Braison and Noah, and he adopted her children Brandi and Trace. Their divorce was finalized in 2022. His seven-month marriage to singer Firerose ended in divorce in August 2024. He also has a son, Christopher Cody, from a previous relationship.
Interesting and fun facts
In spite of his age, Billy is in great professional shape. In 2022 he appeared in the new film “Christmas in Paradise”. At the set of this tropical tale, he met the extremely beautiful actress Elizabeth Hurley, with whom he liked to cooperate so much! “In this way, I imagined it would be working with Elizabeth Taylor”, he said in an interview with “People”.
After his 2022 divorce from Tish, Billy married Australian singer Firerose in October 2023. Their divorce was finalized in August 2024. In April 2025, he and actress Elizabeth Hurley publicly confirmed their relationship, which continued in 2026.
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