Miley Cyrus has just left the dentist's office. The verdict: The 13-year-old needs braces. A very Hollywood compromise is reached: Attaching the buttresses to the inside of her teeth.
The thing is, Miley has a lot of face time as the title character in the Disney Channel's latest kid sensation, “Hannah Montana.” The March debut drew 5.4 million viewers, the most ever for an original series on the channel. Last month, it was the third-highest-rated show on television among tween girls (9-to 14-year-olds), trailing only “American Idol's” two showings.
As a newly minted TV star, Miley is under a lot of scrutiny, as she rudely discovered the day after the first episode was broadcast.
“I went to Universal (Studios Hollywood theme park) with my brother and a friend,” Miley says by phone as she's being driven back to “Hannah's” Hollywood set. “The recognition was immediate. It was craziness – all the kids on every ride. I felt like I was going to hurl after one ride, and all the kids were like, 'Hannah Montana is about to puke!' ”
If anyone can handle the pressures of fame, it's Miley. Some of her earliest baby pictures were taken by paparazzi with zoom lenses. She was born in Franklin, Tenn., the middle of five children, to country singer Billy Ray Cyrus and his wife, Tish, when the popularity of his smash hit, “Achy Breaky Heart” was at its peak. Y'all remember the line-dancing craze, don't you?
Her given name is Destiny Hope, a reflection of her parents' premonition that she would accomplish great things. But she has always been called Miley, a modification of “Smiley,” because she had such a happy disposition.
Miley's affinity for performing emerged early. “I was singing on the stage with my dad when I was 2,” she says. “I would sing 'Hound Dog' and silly songs for the fun of it.”
She began to get serious about show business when she was 9 and her family moved for a time to Toronto, Canada, where her father was shooting his Pax series, “Doc.”
“She was quite determined, diligent and persistent,” her father says. “While I was in Toronto, she found the best coaches, worked on her chops, went to auditions and did all the different things to reach her goal.”
She persevered despite Billy Ray's discouragement. “My dad said, 'Just stay in school and do cheerleading. Be a normal kid,' ” Miley recalls.
The concept of “Hannah Montana” is sheer genius: By day, Miley Stewart is an average eighth-grader, madly crushing on boys, being spurned by the cool kids in the lunchroom. By night, she has a secret life, known only to her family and close friends, as teen pop idol Hannah Montana.
When Miley puts on a wig and glams out to hit the concert stage as Hannah, she looks like a cross between Mary Kate Olsen and Brittany Murphy. “The music style,” she says, “is very Kelly Clarkson.”
The star-making assembly line at Disney starts with a teen sitcom and gradually adds on a pop-singing career. Meanwhile, the marketing arm begins churning out all manner of branded products – clothing, books, makeup, the works. That progression has worked wonders for Hilary Duff and Raven.
But the premise of “Hannah Montana” has accelerated Miley's trajectory. The soundtrack for “Hannah Montana” comes out this summer, and Miley has signed a solo recording contract with Hollywood Records. “I get on my own thing – a little country and then pop and rock and some bluegrass,” she says. “I play guitar. I've recorded some demos with my friends.”
