Musical inspiration? Miley Cyrus proves she’s stronger after a breakup in her single “Flowers,” with several pointed clues that the tune is a dig at ex-husband Liam Hemsworth.
The “Wrecking Ball” songstress, 30, has not revealed the inspiration for her latest tune, which she first announced earlier this month. “I CAN LOVE ME BETTER THAN YOU CAN,” Cyrus wrote via Instagram on January 5, teasing the single name and the Friday, January 13, release date.
Immediately, eagle-eyed fans noticed that the track’s debut date correlated with the Hunger Games actor’s 33rd birthday.
“Omfg Miley releasing flowers on Liam’s bday is so petty I LOVE it,” a social media user wrote via Twitter at the time.
While the Hannah Montana alum — who finalized her divorce from Hemsworth in 2020 — has not confirmed if she purposely dropped “Flowers” on her ex’s birthday, she is sharing insight into how she moves on after a split.
“I didn’t wanna leave you, I didn’t wanna lie / Started to cry, but then remembered I can buy myself flowers / Write my name in the sand,” Cyrus crooned in the song. “Talk to myself for hours / Say things you don’t understand. I can take myself dancing and I can hold my own hand. Yeah, I can love me better than you can.”
The Tennessee native also released a music video for “Flowers” on Friday, in which she strutted around a mansion by herself. In the footage, Cyrus danced alone, lounged in a pool, completed a solo workout and picked out an outfit.
The “Party in the USA” musician first met the Australia native on the set of 2010’s The Last Song, in which they played eventual couple Ronnie and Will, respectively. After dating on and off following production, Hemsworth proposed in June 2012. The duo called off their engagement in 2013 before eventually reuniting three years later. They wed in December 2018 at their Tennessee home. They ultimately went their separate ways one year later and their divorce was finalized in January 2020.
“In trying to put that back together, instead of going, ‘Oh, nature kind of did something I couldn’t do for myself; it forced me to let go,’ I ran toward the fire,” the Disney Channel alum said of their on-off relationship during a December 2020 episode of The Howard Stern Show, claiming there was “too much conflict” in their marriage. “Which is not abnormal, a lot of animals do this and end up dying, like, deers run into the forest.”
She added at the time: “You’re attracted to that heat, and me being an intense person and not wanting to sit with it, and not wanting to go, you know, ‘What could be purposeful about this?’ I just clung to what I had left of that house, which was me and him. And I really do and did love him very, very, very much and still do, always will.”
After their breakup, Cyrus was linked to Kaitlynn Carter and Cody Simpson before moving on with drummer Maxx Morando last year. Hemsworth, for his part, has been dating model Gabriella Brooks since December 2019.
Scroll below to see Cyrus’ biggest “Flowers” Easter eggs about Hemsworth:
Musical inspiration? Miley Cyrus proves she’s stronger after a breakup in her single “Flowers,” with several pointed clues that the tune is a dig at ex-husband Liam Hemsworth.
The “Wrecking Ball” songstress, 30, has not revealed the inspiration for her latest tune, which she first announced earlier this month. “I CAN LOVE ME BETTER THAN YOU CAN,” Cyrus wrote via Instagram on January 5, teasing the single name and the Friday, January 13, release date.
Immediately, eagle-eyed fans noticed that the track’s debut date correlated with the Hunger Games actor’s 33rd birthday.
“Omfg Miley releasing flowers on Liam’s bday is so petty I LOVE it,” a social media user wrote via Twitter at the time.
While the Hannah Montana alum — who finalized her divorce from Hemsworth in 2020 — has not confirmed if she purposely dropped “Flowers” on her ex’s birthday, she is sharing insight into how she moves on after a split.
“I didn’t wanna leave you, I didn’t wanna lie / Started to cry, but then remembered I can buy myself flowers / Write my name in the sand,” Cyrus crooned in the song. “Talk to myself for hours / Say things you don’t understand. I can take myself dancing and I can hold my own hand. Yeah, I can love me better than you can.”
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The Tennessee native also released a music video for “Flowers” on Friday, in which she strutted around a mansion by herself. In the footage, Cyrus danced alone, lounged in a pool, completed a solo workout and picked out an outfit.
The “Party in the USA” musician first met the Australia native on the set of 2010’s The Last Song, in which they played eventual couple Ronnie and Will, respectively. After dating on and off following production, Hemsworth proposed in June 2012. The duo called off their engagement in 2013 before eventually reuniting three years later. They wed in December 2018 at their Tennessee home. They ultimately went their separate ways one year later and their divorce was finalized in January 2020.
“In trying to put that back together, instead of going, ‘Oh, nature kind of did something I couldn’t do for myself; it forced me to let go,’ I ran toward the fire,” the Disney Channel alum said of their on-off relationship during a December 2020 episode of The Howard Stern Show, claiming there was “too much conflict” in their marriage. “Which is not abnormal, a lot of animals do this and end up dying, like, deers run into the forest.”
She added at the time: “You’re attracted to that heat, and me being an intense person and not wanting to sit with it, and not wanting to go, you know, ‘What could be purposeful about this?’ I just clung to what I had left of that house, which was me and him. And I really do and did love him very, very, very much and still do, always will.”
After their breakup, Cyrus was linked to Kaitlynn Carter and Cody Simpson before moving on with drummer Maxx Morando last year. Hemsworth, for his part, has been dating model Gabriella Brooks since December 2019.
Scroll below to see Cyrus’ biggest “Flowers” Easter eggs about Hemsworth:
Credit: Courtesy of Liam Hemsworth/Instagram
Watching Their Home ‘Burn’
Cyrus’ first stanza of “Flowers” mentions a couple who “were right” for each other until they “weren’t,” revealing they had even “built a home and watched it burn.”
The fire metaphor seemingly refers to the couple’s Malibu mansion, which burned down in a 2018 wildfire one month before their nuptials.
“It’s been a heartbreaking few days. This is what’s left of my house,” Hemsworth wrote via Instagram that November, sharing a snap of the rubble. “I spent the day in Malibu yesterday and it was amazing to see the community pulling together to help each other out in any way they can. Malibu is a strong community and this event is only going to make it stronger. … I love u guys. I love you Malibu.”
Cyrus has also frequently paid tribute to the California neighborhood, even naming a 2018 song after it.
Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock
Dancing On Her Own
In a snippet from the music video, Cyrus walks down a deserted street before taking a moment to twerk. The So Undercover actress’ moves seemingly mimic a February 2019 Access Hollywood interview where she performed the same gyration for Hemsworth at the Vanity Fair Oscars afterparty.
“Sweetheart, don’t do that, we’re on the carpet,” Hemsworth can be heard saying in the original clip.
Credit: Broadimage/Shutterstock
Staying Strong
Cyrus also completed a solo workout session in the music video, where she used a pair of battle ropes outside the mansion set while wearing a two-piece fitness outfit. Eagle-eyed fans believe the inclusion of a fitness scene is another telling callout to Hemsworth. Early in the pair’s romance, they were spotted together outside a Pilates studio in 2012.
Credit: Courtesy of Miley Cyrus/Twitter; Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
The Bruno Mars Connection
In the “Flowers” pre-chorus, the Miles to Go author sings that she “can buy myself flowers” and “hold my own hand.” Her lyrics are similar to Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man.” (The “Leave the Door Open” singer released his track in 2012 about ex-girlfriend Jessica Caban.)
Mars’ original lyrics read: “I should have bought you flowers, And held your hand / Should have gave you all my hours, When I had the chance / Take you to every party ’cause all you wanted to do was dance / Now my baby’s dancing, But she’s dancing with another man.”
It appears that Cyrus may have taken inspiration from the Hawaii native before adding an empowering take about self-love.
Mars also has a subtle connection to the Isn’t It Romantic? actor and Cyrus, who danced to “Uptown Funk” at their wedding, per Twitter footage. Following the exes’ divorce, it is reported that Hemsworth once dedicated “When I Was Your Man” to Cyrus after calling into a radio station. (Neither Hemsworth nor Cyrus have confirmed the claims.)
Credit: ETIENNE LAURENT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The Release Date
The single and the music video for “Flowers” dropped on January 13, which is Hemsworth’s birthday.
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