‘Hannah Montana’: Miley Cyrus Said She Worked for 12 Hours Every Day and ‘Had Coffee Jammed Down My Throat’
Hannah Montana was one of the most successful Disney Channel shows of the 2000s. Its main star, Miley Cyrus, became a household name overnight.
However, the success of Hannah Montana also took a lot out of Cyrus. She once shared that she had to work long hours on set and even consumed a lot of coffee at a young age.
Miley Cyrus was on ‘Hannah Montana’ for five years
Hannah Montana premiered in 2006. It followed the life of Miley Stewart, an ordinary girl who has doubles as a pop star named Hannah Montana. Viewers watched as Miley navigates life in two different worlds and trying to keep them from clashing.
Hannah Montana ran for four seasons before it ended in 2011. It also had a movie that came out in 2009.
Thanks to the show, Cyrus became known not just for her acting skills, but her singing skills as well. She has released numerous albums, including soundtracks for Hannah Montana.
Miley Cyrus worked long hours on ‘Hannah Montana’
Hannah Montana was a success on Disney Channel and gave Cyrus a huge launchpad for her career. However, she had to put in a lot of time on the set of the series.
In an interview with Marie Claire in 2015, it was revealed that Cyrus worked for 12 hours every day on the show. She even had to make use of caffeine to give her energy.
“Every morning, I was getting coffee jammed down my throat to wake me up,” she said. “I just had to keep going, be tough, be strong. Everything happened to me on that set.”
Additionally, her mother worried about Cyrus getting seasonal affective disorder, so she “suggested bringing in lights.”
Miley Cyrus once claimed that she wasn’t paid a lot on the show
Although Cyrus worked long hours, she once claimed that she was not paid a lot on Hannah Montana. In an interview with Elle in 2016, Cyrus said that she did not know much during her salary negotiation, so her salary was quite low at one point.
“I just wanted to be on TV. I mean, at one point—they’ll probably kill me for saying it—I was probably the least paid person on my [Hannah Montana] cast because I didn’t know any better,” Cyrus said. “I was just like, I can be on Disney! Yeah, I want to do it!”
Fortunately, Cyrus’ mother became aware of what was going on and decided to protect her daughter’s interests.
“My name was Miley on my show, but I didn’t own my name—we didn’t think about that. Like, Yeah, you can use my name on your show, sure!” Cyrus added, “My mom started understanding how many people take advantage of a child, so she hired smart people to protect me in that way. I’m happy that when I was younger, people protected me and put me in a position where I can now control my music.”
