Dolly Parton Learns She's Actually Related to Goddaughter Miley Cyrus: 'Is That True? That's Amazing!'

Mar. 15, 2025

The Cyrus family tree branches out further than anyone knew!

“Dolly Parton and Miley Cyrus are seventh cousins, once removed! Their common ancestor is John Brickey, born in 1740 in Virginia,” reads a statement from Ancestry.

Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton in Los Angeles in February 2019.Kevin Mazur/Getty

Kevin Mazur/Getty

The company added of Brickey, “He later moved to Blount County, Tennessee with his wife and children and remained there until his death in 1806. The Brickey family originated from France and the family came to the United States in the late 1600s.” [Both Parton and Cyrus are from Tennessee.]

“Is that true? That’s amazing!” exclaimed the “Jolene” musician, before joking about the distant relation: “Well, we’re so close, Miley and I. I would’ve thought we would’ve been at least third cousins, 10 times removed.”

Dolly Parton and Miley Cyrus in Los Angeles in February 2019.Kevin Winter/Getty

Kevin Winter/Getty

She continued of Cyrus, 31, “I’m sure she’ll get a kick out of that, but it doesn’t surprise me because she does feel like family.”

“When she was born, [her father] said, ‘You just have to be her godmother,’ and I said, ‘I accept,'” she recalled at the time. “We never did do a big ceremony, but I’m so proud of her, love her. And she’s just like one of my own.”

Miley Cyrus performs in Los Angeles in February 2024.Kevin Winter/Getty

The godmother-goddaughter duo have maintained a tight-knit relationship over the years. During a June appearance onNetflix’sMy Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman, Miley revealed Parton waspart of the reason her show-stopping performanceof “Flowers” at the 2024 Grammy Awards even happened.

“A tough conversation I had with her: I told her, ‘I’m wondering if I’m going to do the Grammys or not.’ And she said, ‘Well of course you’re going to do the Grammys, and you’re not just going to show up but you’re going to show off. And you’re going to be everything that you are sitting right here in front of me,'” she reflected.

“And she said, ‘And don’t forget about the beauty. The hair, the makeup, the whole show. It’s armor for us,'” added Miley. “She’s always said this to me: ‘You do you, and I’ll do me, and together we’ll be us.’ So she wasn’t telling me to be Dolly, she wasn’t telling me to be fabulous and hide behind the sparkles and the hair. She was telling me to be me.”

source: people.com