Congratulations are in order for Miley Cyrus, who is officially a Disney legend. Over the weekend, the singer became the youngest person in history to be inducted into the company’s highest honor. Cyrus received her accolade at the D23 2024 Ultimate fan event, where she delivered an emotional speech. During her speech, Miley Cyrus apologized to Mickey Mouse — the emblem of Disney’s family-friendly image — for her Bangerz era. Fans of the star would recall Cyrus beginning her journey to stardom on Disney with her innocent Hannah Montana image. However, she embarked on a journey of self-discovery, eventually shedding the innocent image for a more provocative and rebellious persona.
The zenith of this transformation came with the release of her 2013 album Bangerz. The album, featuring hits like Wrecking Ball and We Can’t Stop, was a bold statement of independence. Just like that, gone was the squeaky-clean image of Cyrus’s Disney Channel days. From twerking at the MTV VMAs to swinging naked on a wrecking ball in the music video of her song Wrecking Ball, the actress’s actions were designed to shock and provoke. As such, Miley Cyrus thought it was necessary to apologize to Mickey Mouse for her wild antics.
“I definitely wasn’t created in a lab. And if I was, there must have been a bug in the system which caused me to malfunction somewhere between the years of 2013 to 2016. Sorry, Mickey!” Cyrus joked as the crowd erupted with laughter.
Elsewhere during her speech, Miley Cyrus also looked back on the Disney role that catapulted her to success. The singer noted that Disney had to give away free tickets to “Hannah’s” shows when she began playing Hannah Montana. According to Cyrus, nobody knew who she was in those early days.
“The first song I opened with was titled This Is the Life. Which, of course, no one knew. Because, in reality, I was a little girl in a blonde wig at the mall with a big dream,” she recalled.
However, Cyrus said she was proud to have been Hannah Montana, which made “Miley” in many ways. She finished her speech by dedicating the award to Hannah, her loyal fans, and everyone who made her dream a reality.
