Noah Cyrus Says Growing Up as Miley Cyrus’ Sister Was ‘Unbearable’
Keeping it real. Noah Cyrus candidly revealed the downside to growing up in big sister Miley Cyrus’ shadow.
Noah, 20, took to Instagram Live on Saturday, May 16, to talk about her new EP, The End of Everything. At the time, the “July” singer grew emotional when discussing the track “Young and Sad” because it details her experiences being related to Miley, 27, as she became a teen sensation.
“Being born in the family I was in, everybody gave me such a hard time for having a hard time being Miley’s little sister,” she said during the virtual chat. “But, you know, I always felt like I was that person that no one gave a s–t about due to what people said to me online.”
The “I’m Stuck” artist continued, “It was absolutely unbearable. And that’s why I write, ‘My sister’s like sunshine / Always bringing good light wherever she will go / And I was born to rain clouds / When they blew the flame out / Blessed in her shadows.’ Because, that’s why everybody always says to me, that no matter what, I was going to be in that shadow.”
Noah admitted how “hard” it was for her to not believe this sentiment because it was repeatedly reinforced by others. The “Lonely” singer revealed that she was told she “wasn’t enough” as well.
“I just wanted to open up about that once and for all, because that’s been a big part of my life,” she explained of making the emotional track. “I probably won’t talk about it anymore, but I just wanted to put it out. Everybody always says, ‘You’re giving the people power by seeing it,’ but I can’t control seeing it. You guys are young, you know the internet. And it’s been really tough on me, so that song is just pretty tough to get through.”
Last month, Noah opened up being referred to as “Hannah Montana’s sister” over the years. “Somebody not even coming up to you and calling you by your name? That’s going to really f–k you up as a kid,” she told tmrw magazine. “Make you feel, like, you don’t f–king even matter to the population — for them to not even know your name.”
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Noah has been making a name for herself as a solo artist beginning in 2016, when she released her debut single “Make Me (Cry).” She dropped her first EP, Good Cry, in 2018.
Meanwhile, Miley rose to fame as teen on Disney Channel’s Hannah Montana. Since the series concluded in 2011, she’s gone on to have a successful music career that led to her first Grammy nomination in 2015 for Best Pop Vocal album.
Along with Noah’s rise in fame, Miley has spoken out about how protective she is of her little sister. The Black Mirror alum has also opened up about wanting Noah to stay true to herself amid her rise in the industry.
“I think it makes you jaded, it makes you guarded, and I don’t ever want her to get like that or your style or the way that you think because you want to please people,” Miley said on iHeartRadio’s “Label Defiers With ZICO Coconut Water” podcast in 2017. “I really hope that she never feels those pressures and I hope other people respect her and don’t actually make her something she’s not.”
