Why Billy Ray Cyrus' Ex Firerose Didn't Think She Would "Survive" Their Divorce
Firerose is opening up about a difficult year after her split from Billy Ray Cyrus.
Two months after her divorce from the Hannah Montana star was finalized, the Australian singer—whose real name is Johanna Rosie Hodges—discussed undergoing a preventative double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery, which she opted for after learning she carried the BRCA1 breast cancer gene.
“There’s been a few times I wasn’t sure that I would survive,” Firerose told Us Weekly in an interview published Oct. 17. “It was a very humbling experience that put everything into perspective.”
The singer added that she also developed pulmonary embolisms in her lungs, which are blockages caused by blood clots.
She added, “It’s a very serious thing that can happen and easily can be fatal.”
The comments come just days after Firerose shared what she would tell her younger self about the “Achy Breaky Heart” singer, whom she first met in 2010.
“When I think about what I just went through,” she told the Australian Sunday Telegraph's Stellar magazine, “I would have told my 22-year-old self to run in the opposite direction and never look back.”
Although Firerose, 36, fell out of touch with Billy Ray, 63, after their time on the Disney Channel show, they reconnected in 2020 and went on to marry in October 2023. However, the relationship quickly soured, with the “Old Town Road” singer filing for divorce in May after seven months of marriage.
In the filing, the Grammy winner accused his then-wife of isolating him from his family—including daughters Miley Cyrus, 31, and Noah Cyrus, 24,—as well as lying about her identity.
Upon settling the divorce in August, a source told E! News that Firerose opted for a settlement because it was “important to her that this continuous smear campaign end, and the emotional turmoil stop so she can close the door on this chapter.”
As for Billy Ray—who in addition to Miley and Noah shares Trace Cyrus, 35, Brandi Cyrus, 37, and Braison Cyrus, 30, with ex Tish Cyrus—he told E! News he was “very relieved” to have settled the legal proceedings.
“This has been absolutely the most crazy insane scam I have ever heard of,” he said in a statement at the time. “Let alone the fact I'm right in the center and basically the target of the scheme. It's unfortunate it played out this way.”
For more details on Firerose and Billy Ray’s relationship, keep reading.
Billy Ray Cyrus' first encounter with Firerose came when he was taking a break with his dog on the set of Hannah Montana, the hit Disney Channel series he starred on with his daughter Miley Cyrus from 2006 until 2011.
"On that given day, Firerose came out of the front door," the "Achy Breaky Heart" singer told People. "There was almost a moment of, I don't know, recognition. I was like, 'This girl's a star.'"
While Cyrus had no idea who Firerose, then 22, was at the time, his future fiancé definitely knew who he was. "Growing up in Australia, my love of music was predominant over everything," she said. "I've known his music since forever."
There for an audition, Cyrus offered to introduce Firerose to the Hannah Montana crew and invited her to watch the show's rehearsal.
"She met a lot of the cast and met the producers, writers," he said. "And, in some ways, well, in a lot of ways, we became friends."
While the duo stayed in touch—"Our friendship was so solid over the years," Firerose told People—their bond grew when they became songwriting partners during the pandemic.
"She plays all of her own instruments and writes her own songs," Cyrus explained. "We began sharing music, and it just evolved."
Cyrus and Firerose released their first song together "New Day," which they collaborated on amid Cyrus' private marital strife. Tish Cyrus filed for divorce for a second time in April 2022, citing "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for their split and noting they hadn't lived together since February 2020.
"Billy confided in me a lot of what was going on in his life," Firerose explained. "I was just the best friend I could possibly be, supporting him."
After finalizing his divorce with Tish and "a lot prayer," Cyrus was ready to move on and asked Firerose to be more than friends.
"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," Cyrus said. "Again, we're musicians, first and foremost, both of us. And we found this harmony, and this rhythm, this melody to life."
Soon after they began dating, Firerose moved to Cyrus' Franklin, Tenn., farm.
Cyrus officially confirmed his relationship with Firerose when he posted the first selfie of the couple on his Instagram page.
"Wishing everyone a brilliant time at the @vmas tonight!" he captioned the pic. "Music changes everything."
Firerose also shared the photo on her page, using it to pay tribute to her boyfriend. "The world is a better place with you in it," she wrote on Aug. 25. "Happy Birthday Billy."
The pair celebrated the fall season with a cozy snap in front of a tree with orange and red leaves, but all eyes were on the diamond ring on Firerose's finger, fueling speculation that the couple was engaged.
The couple released their second collaboration "Time," with Cyrus describing the tune as a "reckoning."
"I've spent my life worried about things that are beyond my control," he told People. "But at this spot in my life, [I know] that all you really have is the happiness that you feel inside your mind and your heart."
After months of speculation, Cyrus' rep confirmed to E! News that he was engaged to Firerose.
"Together imagine magic everyday," Cyrus captioned a Nov. 22 selfie of the couple. "…that's what love is."
Firerose later detailed Cyrus' proposal, which happened in August at their Tennessee home.
"Billy looked at me and said, 'Do you, do you wanna marry me?' And I was just like, 'Of course I do. I love you,'" she recalled. "He said, 'I love you. I wanna make this official. I wanna be with you forever.' "
The singers were "dreaming of a white Christmas" while celebrating the holidays together. To commemorate the season, the couple teamed up for a cover of "Silent Night."
While Cyrus captioned this snap "Sunsets were made for this," he and Firerose only had eyes for each other.
Despite reports of tension with his children following his divorce, Cyrus posted a photo with Firerose and his daughter Noah Cyrus after she announced her engagement to Pinkus.
As for how Miley Cyrus feels about her father's romance with Firerose, a source close to the "Wrecking Ball" singer previously told E! News, "The divorce between her parents have put a strain on her relationship with her dad and it's been hard to connect with him in the last year. She hopes they can eventually work on their relationship."
The insider added that while Miley "doesn't have a relationship" with Firerose, "she, of course, hopes [Billy Ray] is happy."
The engaged couple teamed up with songwriter Diane Warren for the romantic ballad "Plans," which Cyrus described as "the story of our lives" on Instagram.
The tune finds Cyrus and Firerose singing "Have you got plans for forever?" together in the chorus, with the music video featuring the pair in wedding attire.
The crooning couple made their official red carpet debut at the 16th Annual Academy of Country Music Honors on Aug. 23, in Nashville. After posing for photos, Cyrus and Firerose took the stage together to perform with Travis Denning during the show.
Billy Ray and Firerose confirmed they tied the knot in October 2023 by sharing photos from their wedding day.
"10/10/23 will always be the beautiful, joyous day that our two souls united as one in holy matrimony," they wrote on Instagram. "It was the most perfect, ethereal celebration of love we could have ever imagined.For both of us to hear the preacher say, 'Billy Ray and Firerose Cyrus… I now pronounce you husband and wife' that was the sacred moment our new forever began. Long Live Love!"
Seven months later, Billy Ray officially filed for divorce from Firerose.
The couple finalized their divorce after a two-month legal battle, their lawyers told TMZ.
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