Before Lainey Wilson was a GRAMMY-winning country star, she was a Hannah Montana impersonator. As a high school student in tiny Baskin, Louisiana, the “Hang Tight Honey” singer would often “open up as Lainey Wilson” before donning her blonde wig for a 15-song karaoke set. This past weekend, Wilson revived her former persona when she performed the Hannah Montana theme song during a ceremony honoring Cyrus as a Disney Legend. The Entertainer of the Year later took to social media to celebrate the “full circle moment.”
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“Still Pinching Myself”: Lainey Wilson Honors Miley Cyrus
At 31, Miley Cyrus became the youngest person ever to receive Disney Legend status. During a ceremony Sunday (Aug. 11) at a D23 event in Anaheim, California, one of the “Flowers” singer’s biggest fans joined her onstage.
Lainey Wilson paid tribute to Cyrus with a spirited cover of “Best of Both Worlds,” the Disney Channel show theme song.
The “Watermelon Moonshine” singer quoted the song again in a Monday (Aug. 12) post to Instagram. Wilson, 32, posted a carousel of pictures from the ceremony—along with a throwback of herself performing as the pop star leading a double life.
“From performing as Hannah Montana on flat bed trailers at birthday parties to honoring the legend herself…now that right there is what ya call a full circle moment,” wrote the “Good Horses” singer. “@mileycyrus you’re such an inspiration. Thank you for letting me honor you. Still pinching myself about last night.”
Fellow country stars stopped by the comments section to give both Wilson and Cyrus their flowers. “This is iconic,’” wrote Lauren Alaina.
“FANGIRLING,” added Megan Moroney.
Wilson Recalls Seeing This Massive Star Before She Was Famous
As a millennial woman, Lainey Wilson grew up under the influence of Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift. And she recently got her own full circle moment with the “Blank Space” singer, 34.
“I actually watched her perform at CMA Fest on the Riverfront stage when she was probably 15. I was 14, and I remember just thinking, man, this girl’s future is bright,” Lainey Wilson told People. “And there was hardly anybody in the crowd except for me and my family.”
“And I got to tell her that,” continued the “Heart Like a Truck” singer. “And she was like, ‘There were, like, 16 people there.’ And I said, ‘Well, we were four of them.’”
Featured image via Lainey Wilson / Instagram
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