Miley Cyrus kicked off the New Year by teasing the release of her new single, Flowers. However, it wasn’t lost on her fans that the release date for the new single is January 13, which will be Liam Hemsworth’s 33rd birthday.
Hemsworth and Cyrus had a high-profile on-again-off-again relationship beginning in 2009. After 10 years of dating on and off, two engagements, and marriage, the pair divorced and split for good in 2020.
Both Hemsworth and Cyrus have begun new relationships since. However, Cyrus’s latest decision has some thinking that maybe her relationship with Hemsworth isn’t all water under the bridge.
On the surface, Cyrus’s music announcement wasn’t too unusual. Many singers and celebrities, like Jennifer Lopez and Paris Hilton, have announced or teased new music in light of the new year.
However, it didn’t take long for commenters to begin questioning why she chose to drop the music on Hemsworth’s birthday. The song’s content also seems like it might subtly reference her breakup with Hemsworth as she sings, “I can love me better.”
While some claimed the release date was just a coincidence, some criticized Cyrus for trying to shade Hemsworth when they have both seemingly moved on.
Is Miley Cyrus shading her ex-husband, Liam Hemsworth?
A debate started on Cyrus’ Instagram post about her new music after one commenter pointed out the apparent shade.
One commenter criticized her for releasing the music on Hemsworth’s birthday and suggested she should “move on.” The commenter also insinuated she purposely chose the release date as a promotion strategy for her music.
However, others replied that the release date was just a “coincidence” and also questioned if Hemsworth would even care about Cyrus releasing music on his birthday.
Another commenter stated that it was “confusing” for Cyrus to seemingly shade Hemsworth after having moved on. The commenter claimed it made it seems like Cyrus wasn’t “over” Hemsworth, while another commenter stated that no one ever really gets over a broken heart.
Without confirmation from Cyrus, it is difficult to tell if she really was trying to shade Hemsworth. After all, both have seemed to move on since the breakup.
In fact, Cyrus clapped back at the backlash she received when she allegedly moved on “too fast” following her separation from Hemsworth. She even told Stylist, “So with heartbreak, I try to not get lost in the emotion, the world is going to keep turning, it’s like a death when you lose a loved one.”
Hemsworth has seemingly moved on, too, as he has been in a relationship with Gabriella Brooks for three years. Despite the statement and evidence of the breakup being in the past, this isn’t the first time Cyrus has surprised fans with a sudden bit of shade directed at Hemsworth.
Meanwhile, Cyrus wouldn’t be the first artist to seemingly shade an ex with a music announcement.
Did Cyrus borrow a page from Lana Del Rey’s book?
Just days before Cyrus’s announcement, fellow singer Lana Del Rey was also accused of shading her ex-boyfriend, Sean Larkin, with her music announcement.
Del Rey caught her followers’ attention when she announced her newest album, Did you know there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd, which will release on March 10, 2023. Fans wondered if it was a coincidence that she announced the new album on December 7, which was Larkin’s birthday.
It wasn’t just the announcement date that sparked speculation but also the promotion strategy Del Rey opted to use. She opted to promote her new album with just one billboard.
Meanwhile, that single billboard was set up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which is the hometown of Larkin. Del Rey even made the trip all the way out to Tulsa just to pose for a car selfie next to the billboard.
Similar to Cyrus, Del Rey split with her partner in 2020, however, they had only dated for six months before splitting up. Neither Cyrus nor Del Rey has responded to claims of throwing shade via their music.