Thursday, Oct. 23, 2008

Miley Cyrus

It's possible that 15-year-old Miley Cyrus only became famous because of her father, country star Billy Ray. But who actually cares about the guy who sang Achy Breaky Heart? Miley — whose real name was Destiny Hope Cyrus until this year, when she legally changed it — is the latest shiny teenage prototype released by the Disney machine. She grew up playing music with her dad (okay, so he did help a little), and when Disney needed a talented singer for its new show, she put on a wig and turned into fictional tween popstar Hannah Montana. Hannah Montana received the highest debut ratings of any Disney Channel series when it debuted in 2006. Miley's music albums — both as Montana and as herself — raced up the Billboard charts. Now that she's older, rumors of Britney-like behavior have stared to spread. How many risqué photos and 20-year-old boyfriends will it take before Miley and Disney part ways? It'll probably be another year or two before we find out.