Billy Ray Cyrus announces engagement to singer Firerose, 27 years his junior https://ift.tt/CTVWnsf

Billy Ray Cyrus confirmed he is engaged to singer Firerose on Wednesday.

Speculation about the couple's relationship status began in October, after Cyrus shared a photo showing off a diamond ring on Firerose's hand.

Cyrus, 61, and Firerose, 34, met for the first time 12 years ago while he was filming "Hannah Montana," he revealed in a new interview with People magazine.

"There's a couple old pine trees on the lot that look like Tennessee," he recalled to the outlet. "Tex (his dog) and I would go out there in the middle of the day and he'd take care of his business and we'd stretch and I'd think how much I missed Tennessee. On that given day, Firerose came out of the front door. There was almost a moment of, I don't know, recognition. I was like, 'This girl's a star.'"

"She told me she'd had an audition and I said, 'Well, I'm sure you got the job.'"

BILLY RAY CYRUS, SINGER FIREROSE HAVE BEEN DATING FOR AWHILE; DID NOT OVERLAP WITH MARRIAGE TO TISH: REPORT

Although Firerose did not get the part she auditioned for that day, Cyrus introduced her to a handful of producers in the industry.

"I just thought, well, the casting agents, the producers, the writers, they're all on the floor of where we do ‘Hannah Montana.’ And I actually said to her, 'Don't ever take a strange man up on this offer, but, in this case, Tex will testify that you will be totally safe. I'm going to introduce you to a producer and you can kind of make yourself at home and watch us rehearse and you know, maybe it might lead to a role or just another contact at Disney.' And so, off me and her and Tex went back to the studio and I think she met a lot of the cast and met the producers, writers. And, in some ways, well, in a lot of ways, we became friends."

Cyrus eventually asked Firerose to be more than friends after he and his ex-wife Tish filed for divorce for the third time. The divorce news broke in April, and Firerose moved in with Cyrus shortly after.

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In August, Cyrus proposed.

"Billy looked at me and said, 'Do you, do you wanna marry me?' And I was just like, 'Of course I do. I love you,'" Firerose recalled.

"He said, ‘I love you. I wanna make this official. I wanna be with you forever,’" she added.

Throughout Cyrus' relationship with Firerose, rumors have surfaced that the "Achy Breaky Heart" singer and his children with Tish have not gotten along. Cyrus and Tish, who were married for 30 years, share five children together; Brandi, Trace, Miley, Braison and Noah.

Miley reportedly has been closer with her mother during this time.

"The divorce between her parents have put a strain on her relationship with her dad, and it's been hard to connect with him in the last year," a source previously told E! News. "She hopes they can eventually work on their relationship."

However, Cyrus emphasized in the new interview that there are no hard feelings between him and the family following the divorce.

"Everyone knew that that relationship was over a long time ago," Cyrus claimed. "Everybody's turning the page. It's been a lot, but everyone knew that it was time for a change."