If there's a Renaissance man in these opening years of the 21st century, Billy Ray Cyrus has got to be it. In addition to his award-winning career as a country music artist, he costars with his daughter, Miley, on Disney Channel's series "Hannah Montana" -- and now he's shown America his dancing chops as well, with a stint on ABC TV's "Dancing with the Stars."
Billy Ray's "Dancing" run is over, but there's still plenty in his life to keep him on his toes. He and Miley are in the midst of shooting a new season of "Hannah," and they both have new albums hitting the store shelves. Billy Ray's latest endeavor is entitled "Home at Last" -- it's a savory mix of original songs and favorite standards like the lovely "Brown-Eyed Girl."
One track particularly close to Billy Ray's heart is "Ready, Set, Don't Go," a paean to his daughter. He explains that it's "a song that I wrote about Miley and the family as they drove out of our Tennessee home, moving to California to begin the series 'Hannah Montana.'" He continues, "It was that moment every daddy goes through when they realize their little girl's growing up and it's time for her to spread her wings. She might be leaving for college or getting married, but as much as you want to keep her protected, you know you've got to let her take that chance. It doesn't matter if you're mama and daddy or mamaw and papaw [grandparents] -- that moment's heart-wrenching and beautiful all at the same time."
On top of the new album, the upcoming tour, and the television show, Billy Ray is making time to do just a little more dancing -- with some lucky fan. The winner will travel to Los Angeles, attend a "Dancing with the Stars" taping and the "Hannah Montana" set, have lunch with Billy Ray, and -- as the grand finale -- the winner will have the opportunity to dance with Billy Ray. If you've got an itch to cut the rug (or just to meet the guy) this is quite literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
With so many irons in the fire, however, Billy Ray never loses sight of what he truly loves -- music and his family. One of the great advantages of working with Disney, he says, is the chance to combine the two -- as he will be doing to support "Home at Last."
"I'm gonna be doing some touring. As a matter of fact, I love going out 
with the band, I love seeing the fans and meeting the kids and the family. That's one thing about our concerts now -- the entire family is there, which seems like what Disney's always represented. Whether it's a movie or a TV show, it seems like it's always meant for the whole family and that's what our concerts are now. I see the kids, I see the mom and dad, I see the mama and papa, and it's a lot of fun to look out there and see 'em all singing along and loving each other and dancing together and just having a good time."
"It will always be my passion, making music. It's also very therapeutic for me to make music. I've always loved to sing and perform in front of people and entertain. I always wanted to be known as an entertainer, a singer, and a songwriter. Being an actor never was in the equation, but somehow I kind of get to do it all now," he says. "I feel very fortunate and lucky. I love being who I am and doing what I do, and I love the music that I'm making and I love the show that I'm acting in and getting to work with Miley, it's ... to borrow a line of hers, it's the best of both worlds. And I love doing what I'm doing now, which is really best reflected in the title of this album. People have asked 'why is the album called "Home at Last,"' and it's because that's what this feels like in this time period of my life. I'm home at last."
*Disney Insider
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