Season 4 “Dancing With the Stars” alum Billy Ray Cyrus kicked a stage manager before the live show, according to former pro, Cheryl Burke. The ballroom dancer recalled the incident on the June 28 episode of the “Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans” podcast.
“We were all nervous. It was right before, like right when it was going to end, our dress rehearsal, our stage manager tells Billy Ray, can you get on your mark? So that, you know, the director can light you,” Burke explained.
“And he’s been asking like three, four times at that time, Billy Ray kicked our stage manager. Out of nowhere, straight up donkey kicked him,” she continued, adding, “It turned into a hot mess. It was like, and his time was up after that.”
Burke confirmed that Cyrus’ action was intentional and not an accident. Cyrus was partnered with Karina Smirnoff for the season and the two finished the competition in 5th place.
Heavy has reached out to Cyrus for comment.
Billy Ray Cyrus Received a Lot of Criticism on ‘Dancing With the Stars’
Cyrus and Smirnoff made it pretty far in the dancing competition, but they didn’t have the easiest time. In fact, the judges were very critical of Cyrus.
Following his foxtrot, for example, Cyrus was told his performance was “deliciously awful” by Bruno Tonioli (via Today). The audience filled the room with boos, to which Tonioli replied, “I love him like everybody else — but it was horrible. It was crap.”
Tonioli also insinuated that Cyrus had danced his last dance, telling him, “If by any miracle you remain in this competition, she’s going to end up in Betty Ford,” referring to Smirnoff (via The Blade).
While waiting for the judges’ scores, Cyrus said, “Bruno calling me crap is the pot calling the kettle black.”
Sure enough, Cyrus and Smirnoff’s low scores coupled with viewer votes left them in last place — and Cyrus had a feeling.
“This is a celebration tonight. I got to meet my hero, Muhammad Ali, last night. I conquered my fear. I’m happy to be here and I’m ready to go on Jimmy Kimmel,” he said prior to his elimination. As many longtime fans of “Dancing With the Stars” know, the eliminated duo heads to “Jimmy Kimmel Live” for a sort of exit interview. And that’s just what Cyrus (and Smirnoff) did.
Billy Ray Cyrus Is Going Through a Messy Divorce
Burke discussed the incident with Cyrus on the “headlines” portion of her weekly podcast. The discussion began when she and podcast guest Jill Escoto were talking about the country singer’s ongoing divorce.
Cyrus was married to Australian singer Firerose for just seven months before things fell apart. According to TMZ, Cyrus cited “irreconcilable differences” and “inappropriate marital conduct” for the grounds of the divorce.
In court documents obtained by People magazine, Firerose accused Cyrus of domestic abuse.
“Wife was the victim of extreme verbal, emotional, and psychological abuse. Wife was subjected to Husband’s persistent drug use accompanied with the consumption of marijuana which made Husband unpredictable and volatile towards Wife,” the court documents read, in part, per People.
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