Miley Cyrus's sad secret brother

EXCLUSIVE by Paul Henderson in Fort Worth, Texas

She’s a £17million superstar at 16.. he’s on £5-an-hour and waits weeks to hear from dad Billy Ray

One is the world’s most famous teenager, with £17million in the bank.

The other works part-time in an electronics store for £5 an hour, and relies on his mum to give him lifts to school.

Meet Miley Cyrus’s half-brother Christopher, 17.

Although there are just eight months between them and they share the same father, Miley and Christopher are worlds apart.

Days before the release of Hannah Montana: The Movie, Miley declared: “My priorities are my friends and my family.”

But she was referring to her dad Billy Ray Cyrus, mum Tish and siblings Brandi, Trace, Braison and Noah – she has never publicly mentioned the half-brother she has seen just five times in the past decade.

Recalling their last meeting at a Miley concert near his home in Fort Worth, Texas, in November 2007, Christopher said: “While she was on stage I was watching her from the sidelines.

“Afterwards we spent 20 minutes in her bus. Her voice is fantastic and I’m very proud of my sister.”

But behind the kind words and fondness for his superstar sister, the high-school student harbours bitter memories and regrets at missed opportunities.

Christopher was born after his mother, Kristin Luckey, had a brief relationship with musician Billy Ray Cyrus when she was a waitress in South Carolina. They had split by the time their son was born on April 8, 1992, and Billy Ray’s new girlfriend Tish was already pregnant with Miley.

Christopher is clearly disappointed he does not have a closer relationship with the Cyrus family and recalls being excluded from a reality show with them. “That kind of sucked,” he said.

Christopher believes he would be closer to Miley, 16, if he could get together with his father more often.

He reluctantly read out a string of text messages between him and his father, which began last Christmas Day with Christopher texting: “Merry Christmas.” He said he got a reply on January 4 from Billy Ray saying: “Hey bud, where you been? You disappeared on us.”

Christopher said: “I replied, ‘I disappeared? You disappeared. I tried to get a hold of you.’”

Billy Ray concentrates on the career of Miley, whose fame has eclipsed his own, which peaked with the 1992 single, Achy Breaky Heart. Miley, star of the hit TV series Hannah Montana, was a presenter at the recent Academy Awards and her concert tour last year grossed £37m.

She will publish her autobiography this spring and has an album at the top of the US pop charts. Showbiz experts say “Brand Miley” is worth $1billion (£670m) to Disney. In contrast, Christopher has more modest earnings. “I work at a store for $7.50 (£5.50) an hour. Sometimes I’ll get five hours a week, other weeks I’ll do 20. I take what I can get.”

Related Posts by Category