{"id":678396,"date":"2026-03-24T13:22:18","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T13:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/678396\/"},"modified":"2026-03-24T13:22:18","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T13:22:18","slug":"miley-cyrus-fetes-hannah-montana-a-show-that-launched-a-true-pop-star","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/678396\/","title":{"rendered":"Miley Cyrus fetes ‘Hannah Montana,’ a show that launched a true pop star"},"content":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 Sporting that \u201cHannah Montana\u201d blond hair and bangs, Miley Cyrus<\/a> went back to her roots \u2014 celebrating 20 years of the TV show that launched the career of a real-life pop star.<\/p>\n

Cyrus reunited with cast members of \u201cHannah Montana\u201d in Los Angeles Monday evening for the premiere of the \u201cHannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Cyrus told The Associated Press that the milestone has given her a chance to see the character and series from \u201ca new perspective.\u201d Cyrus, who began the Disney Channel show at age 13, played Miley Stewart, a tween and middle-schooler hiding her secret life as a famous pop singer.<\/p>\n

\u201cGetting to be on the outside now, getting to be grown and be a part of it in a way that I couldn\u2019t when I was in the middle of it before, and all the chaos and the schedule and the performing of it all,\u201d Cyrus said, \u201cnow it just gets to be a celebration. So it is a new perspective. I love that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The anniversary special, which started streaming Tuesday on Disney+ and Hulu, celebrates 20 years since the show\u2019s premiere. Filmed in front of a live audience, it features archival footage and is centered on an interview with Cyrus \u2014 now 33 and a genuine pop star \u2014 conducted by podcast host Alex Cooper.<\/p>\n

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It includes several musical numbers, starting with the series anthem \u201cThe Best of Both Worlds\u201d and ending with a new song dedicated to Cyrus\u2019 younger self. It also includes appearances by friends and family members, including father Billy Ray Cyrus, with whom Miley Cyrus tries to recreate their handshake from the series. Selena Gomez, who played a rival, makes an appearance, as does singer-songwriter Chappell Roan, who speaks to Miley Cyrus\u2019 influence on her career.<\/p>\n

Addressing the audience at the premiere, Miley Cyrus paid tribute both to fellow cast members and fans. \u201cWithout you all, this show would have never been what it is, and I love saying what it is, not what it was,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cTonight isn\u2019t about looking back into the past, but it\u2019s about what it means to us still tonight,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

Jason Earles, who played Miley\u2019s brother Jackson, told the AP that watching the show now highlights how much time has passed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think if you go back and you watch the episodes, there\u2019s enough dated references like old flip phones and stuff that you go, \u2018Oh no, no, this show was a little while ago,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Cody Linley, who played Miley\u2019s on-and-off boyfriend Jake Ryan, reflected on the impact of portraying a teen heartthrob.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to believe that there were girls that had pictures of me with my shirt off in their locker and they would have me sign it,\u201d Linley said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s hard not to let it go to your head, because you have to remember that it\u2019s an image that they are seeing. It\u2019s not you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also attending the premiere was country singer Lainey Wilson, who recalled working as a \u201cHannah Montana\u201d impersonator early in her career.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom 8th grade to 12th grade, five years of my life, I would open up the show as Lainey Wilson, I would run behind a tree and put on my \u2018Hannah Montana\u2019 get-up,\u201d the singer said. \u201cI did birthday parties, fairs, festivals \u2026 I was hitting the roads.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 Sporting that \u201cHannah Montana\u201d blond hair and bangs, Miley Cyrus went back to her…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":678397,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[29],"tags":[36340,197426,276,435,59650,285633,171,285632,285634,115624,224,57119,10239,13668,975,55017,399,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-678396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-alex-cooper","tag-billy-ray-cyrus","tag-california","tag-celebrity","tag-chappell-roan","tag-cody-linley","tag-entertainment","tag-jake-ryan","tag-jason-earles","tag-lainey-wilson","tag-los-angeles","tag-media-and-entertainment-industry","tag-miley-cyrus","tag-montana","tag-music","tag-selena-gomez","tag-television","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116284368502191902","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=678396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=678396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=678396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=678396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}