Miley Cyrus hadn't headlined a major show in nearly four years. When she finally did — two sold-out nights at the Hollywood Bowl — she spent one of the night's defining moments crying for the woman who made her.
On Friday night, before roughly 18,000 people, Cyrus broke down during a tribute to her late godmother, Dolly Parton, who died on August 25 after a brief battle with cancer at age 80. She told the crowd she'd partly chosen the Bowl because it was the one place she'd ever watched Parton perform. "Me and Dolly, we are eternal. Nothing in this life could ever tear us apart. And I'm going to see her again, and I can't wait because I miss her." Then she sang "Jolene" — the song Parton wrote in 1974 — through tears, calling her "aunt Dolly" the author of some of the greatest music of our time.
The backstory is pure Dolly. Years ago, when Cyrus came to that Bowl show, Parton wanted her on stage in a matching costume — Cyrus declined, wanting one night to experience her like the rest of the world. Parton's response? She opened the show by singing "The Best of Both Worlds" — the Hannah Montana theme — then announced her goddaughter was in the audience, blowing Cyrus's cover in front of 18,000 people. "Which defeated the entire purpose of the conversation that we had just had," Cyrus deadpanned. "Like so many things Dolly did, that I didn't understand it at the time."
The engagement was a full reset: her tenth album, Bass Persuades, released in September, with Cyrus dropping her surname to perform simply as Miley. The setlist ran from new material — "Orbit," "Handstand," "Walk of Fame" — through the hits: "We Can't Stop," "Wrecking Ball" (clutching a heart-shaped frame with Parton's photo), "The Climb," "Party in the USA," "Flowers." Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips joined for "Do You Realize??" and "Karen Don't Be Sad."
The DAOS take: this is what lineage looks like. Dolly opened for her goddaughter with a Hannah Montana cover and announced her to the world; Miley answered by giving the Bowl its most emotional moment in years. Mentorship in music works the same way it works in the fight game — the legends invest in the next generation, and the next generation carries the name forward when the time comes. "We are eternal" isn't sentiment. It's a mission statement.
Sources: TBS News · Taste of Country · Knox News
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