Miley Cyrus has been a household name since she was a teenager, and because she grew up in the public eye, her dating life has always been under a microscope. Whether she was the girl-next-door on Disney Channel or swinging on a wrecking ball, fans have constantly asked the same question: is Miley Cyrus a lesbian? The answer isn't a simple yes or no. Honestly, Miley has spent years dismantling the very idea that she has to fit into one specific box. She’s been very vocal about the fact that she doesn't identify as a lesbian, but she’s definitely not straight either. She’s navigated her identity through several labels, eventually landing on a few that feel right for her.
What is Miley Cyrus’s sexual orientation?
If you're looking for a specific label, Miley has used a few different ones over the years to describe how she feels. In 2015, she officially came out as pansexual. For anyone who isn't familiar with the term, it basically means she is attracted to people regardless of their gender identity or biological sex.
She’s also frequently used the word "queer" to describe her place in the LGBTQ+ community. During an interview with Vanity Fair in 2019, she explained that being a queer person is a massive part of her pride and identity.
But why do people keep asking if she’s a lesbian?
It probably stems from her very public relationships with women. After her high-profile divorce from Liam Hemsworth, she was briefly linked to Kaitlynn Carter. Before that, she dated Victoria’s Secret model Stella Maxwell. These relationships, combined with her "girls are way hotter" comments on podcasts like Call Her Daddy, have led some fans to assume she’s moved away from men entirely.
Understanding pansexuality vs. lesbian identity
The distinction matters to Miley. In a 2016 cover story for Variety, she mentioned that she never really understood her own gender or sexuality for a long time. She even said she "hated" the word bisexual because it felt like it was putting her in a box.
"I don't ever think about someone being a boy or someone being a girl," she told the magazine.
She really leans into the idea of "soul-to-soul" connection. To her, it’s about the vibe and the energy of the person, not what’s on their birth certificate.
The journey from Nashville to "Gender-Neutral"
Growing up in a religious Southern family in Tennessee wasn't exactly the easiest environment for exploring fluid sexuality. Miley has shared that she realized her "eyes started opening" around the fifth or sixth grade. Her very first relationship was actually with a girl, though she kept it quiet for years while she was the face of Hannah Montana.
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She has often spoken about her visit to the LGBTQ center in Los Angeles as a turning point. That’s where she met people who didn't identify as male or female. She saw someone who was "beautiful and sexy and tough but vulnerable" all at once.
"I related to that person more than I related to anyone in my life," she said. This helped her realize she felt "gender-neutral" or "gender-fluid" herself. Once she understood that she didn't feel like a "girl" in the traditional sense, her sexuality started to make way more sense to her. She wasn't straight, she wasn't gay—she was just Miley.
Relationships and "New Age" marriage
One of the reasons the question is Miley Cyrus a lesbian persists is because she often ends up in long-term relationships with men, like her current partner Maxx Morando or her ex-husband Liam Hemsworth.
People tend to look at who someone is dating right now and use that to define their whole identity. Miley has fought against this "erasure" her whole career. Even when she was married to Liam, she was adamant that she was still queer. She famously described their marriage as "New Age," arguing that being in a heterosexual relationship didn't magically make her straight.
She’s also been candid about the dynamics of dating different genders. On the Call Her Daddy podcast, she joked that "d—s make wonderful sculptures," but that she found female bodies much more aesthetically pleasing. She also noted that she often feels she has to take on a "dominant" or "macho" space in relationships with men, which doesn't always feel natural to her.
Why the label matters (and why it doesn't)
Labels can be tricky. For some, they provide a sense of community and belonging. For Miley, they often felt like restrictive "boxes" that she didn't want to live in.
She has used her platform to launch the Happy Hippie Foundation, which focuses on homeless youth, particularly those in the LGBTQ+ community. She’s not just talking the talk; she’s actively working to make sure other kids don't feel as confused or restricted as she did growing up.
If you're following her journey, it's clear that she values freedom above everything else. She wants the freedom to love whoever she wants and the freedom to change her mind about how she identifies as she grows older.
Actionable takeaways for understanding identity
If you're trying to figure out your own labels or just want to be a better ally, Miley’s journey offers a few solid lessons:
- Labels are for the person using them. You don't get to decide if someone is "gay enough" or "straight enough" based on their current partner.
- Sexuality can be fluid. It’s okay if your preferences or the way you describe yourself changes over time.
- Gender and sexuality are linked but different. Miley’s realization that she felt "gender-fluid" was the key to understanding her pansexuality.
- Listen to people's own words. If someone says they are pansexual or queer, believe them, even if they are in a relationship that "looks" straight from the outside.
Miley Cyrus isn't a lesbian; she’s a queer, pansexual woman who has spent her life refusing to be simplified. Whether she's dating a man or a woman, her identity remains the same. She’s a pioneer for a generation that views gender and sex as a spectrum rather than a binary choice. Keep an eye on her interviews, as she’s never been one to shy away from updating her fans on how she’s evolving. Supporting her Happy Hippie Foundation is a great way to turn interest in her life into actual help for the community she represents.