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Entertainment behind the scenes
Billy Ray Cyrus sports shades, bandana in new rock band; Miley mortified?
It’s every daughter’s nightmare. Dad’s fast approaching 50 and decides he needs to recapture his youth.
In this case, former country star Billy Ray Cyrus, better known these days as the father of Miley Cyrus, is taking a page from his daughter’s playbook and hardening his musical style. The mulleted singer of the inescapable 1992 anthem “Achy Breaky Heart” has formed a rock band called Brother Clyde, whose lineup includes former members of Hole and Snot. Its self-titled debut comes out on Tuesday through Disney, which also handles his daughter.
“I always loved rock ‘n’ roll,” said Cyrus, 48, pictured at left in center with bandana. “That was a heavy part of what I was as a young juvenile delinquent. I tried from my first album to rock like any other Southern rock band.”
That album, 1992′s “Some Gave All,” spent a record 17 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the U.S. pop chart. The single “Achy Breaky Heart” turned Cyrus into a country hunk, an image he rightfully treasures.
Tracks on the new disc include first single “Lately,” featuring rapper King Phaze; “The Right Time,” featuring Dolly Parton; “Alive” featuring his son, Trace Cyrus; and a version of Johnny Cash’s “Walk the Line.” Early listens suggest Cyrus is still partial to the early 1990s, possibly aiming for a less-druggy Alice in Chains sound with the millennial earnestness of Daughtry.
Brother Clyde’s lineup also includes drummer Samantha Maloney (Motley Crue, Hole, Eagles of Death Metal), guitarists Jamie Miller (theSTART, Snot) and Dan Knight, and bass player Dave Henning.
Miley Cyrus has stumbled a bit with her new album, “Can’t Be Tamed,” which took the 17-year-old starlet into slightly edgier territory. After debuting at No. 3 on the U.S. pop chart, it now ranks at No. 33 in its sixth week. Her father’s career is less than red-hot, so he has nothing to lose with his middle-aged reinvention as a dad rocker.
Miley Cyrus heads to the movies. Wonder what’s up?
What’s up, of course, is “Hannah Montana The Movie,” which debuts in theaters nationwide on April 10 from Disney. In a little over a week, we’ll be talking to Miley about her new movie, and she’s agreed to take a few questions from Fan Fare readers. We’ll publish those in a Question and Answer story near the film’s release date.
In the movie, Miley’s “Hannah Montana” character, Miley Stewart, is struggling to juggle school, friends and her secret life as a pop singer that has soared into the stratosphere of stardom. So, dear ol’ dad (played by her real life father Billy Ray Cyrus) takes Miley back to Tennessee for an earth-bound reality check.
Miley Cyrus to self: “Coolest. Person. Ev-er!”
It’s not the most modest self-description, but one must remember that Miley Cyrus is only 15 years-old and a Hollywood celebrity. The singing star of “Hannah Montana” fame, has three words to describe herself “Coolest. Person. Ev-er!” she tells People magazine in a special Miley Cyrus issue set to hit newsstands on Friday, July 4. ”Really, I think I’m chill. I am very hyper but I’m very carefree.”
She also tells People her approach to life is to take things as they come. “Madonna always reinvents herself, and that’s what I want to do,” said Miley. ”Whatever comes my way that sounds good, that’s what I want to do. Whether it’s designing clothes or photography or whatever.”
