Lainey Wilson Reveals She Got Her Start Impersonating Miley Cyrus at Hannah Montana Parties

Before she was a country music star, Lainey Wilson was living the best of both worlds. 

In fact, the "Watermelon Moonshine" singer shared that she's not only a fan of Miley Cyrus, but she used to perform as the Disney alum during her Hannah Montana era. 

"I love Miley Cyrus, I used to impersonate Hannah Montana when I was little," Lainey explained to E! News outside the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, April 7. "I did that for like five years. That was my middle school, high school job." 

The country singer's skill impersonating Miley also helped her own career. 

"Every weekend I would do birthday parties, fairs, festivals, St. Jude, all of it," she continued. "I would open up as Lainey Wilson for ‘Hannah Montana.'" (See all of the stars on the red carpet here and more of the 2024 CMT Music Awards on E! News April 8.) 

Naturally, given her history, Lainey also shared that her favorite song so far on Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter is "II Most Wanted" because of the "Flowers" singer's feature. 

And Lainey may have started out as an ordinary girl, but now she's certainly living in an extraordinary world.

"I have been in Nashville for 13 years trying to do this thing," she gushed. "The past two years—it's been crazy. I see people on the up and up and it's just really good to see. I always want them to know that hey if you ever need to talk about anything you call me."

Lainey—who walked away with the trophy for Female Video of the Year at the April 7 ceremony—has turned out to make her own life rock. In fact, while she's still vying for a Miley collab on one of her own songs, other country music stars including Little Big Town have gushed over the "Heart Like a Truck" singer's talent and dedication toward her career. 

"She's so busy," Karen Fairchild said on the CMT Music Awards red carpet. "I'm like, ‘Are you sleeping?' and she's like ‘Yes, kind of but no.'"

In addition to Lainey and Little Big Town, plenty more country stars showed up for country's big night. Read on to see everyone who hit the red carpet. 

--Reporting by Paul Costabile

 

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