Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country music singer, songwriter and actor, best known for his #1 single "Achy Breaky Heart." Cyrus, a multi-platinum selling recording artist, has scored a total of eight Top Ten singles on the [U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart.] His most successful album to date is his debut album, [Some Gave All,] which has been certified 9× Multi-Platinum by the RIAA{1} in the United States.

[Some Gave All] holds the record for a debut arting for 17 consecutive consecutive weeks at the #1 spot on the [U.S. Billboard 200 Albums Chart.] The album ranked 43 weeks in the top 10, a total topped by only one country album in history, [Ropin' The Wind] by Garth Brooks. The album has also sold more than 20 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling debut album of all time for a solo male artist.

Early life: Cyrus was born William Ray Cyrus in Flatwoods, Kentucky to Ron Cyrus, a politician, and his wife, the former Ruth Ann Casto. His grandfather was a Pentecostal preacher. Growing up, he was surrounded by bluegrass and gospel music from his family. His father, a right-handed man, played guitar. Billy Ray, on the other hand, was a lefty. He tried to play his father's guitar, but could never learn. Cyrus went to college at Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky, on a baseball scholarship before switching his focus to music. From 1980 to 1990, Cyrus played at bars before getting a record deal with Mercury Nashville Records.

Acting career: Cyrus starred in the 1999 independent film [Radical Jack.] He also had a small part in David Lynch's 2001 film, [Mulholland Drive] as Gene, a pool cleaner who had been having an affair with the wife of Adam Kesher (Justin Theroux).

In 2001 to 2004, Cyrus played the lead role on the PAX (now ION Television) comedy-drama Doc, which became the network's highest-rated show. In 2005, Cyrus expanded his acting career in a stage production of [Annie Get Your Gun] in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, appearing in the role of Frank Butler.

Cyrus' television credits include [The Nanny, Diagnosis Murder, Love Boat, The Next Wave,] and TNN’s [18 Wheels of Justice.] In 2004, he guest-starred as a limo driver in the episode "The Power of Love" of the Canadian teen drama [Degrassi: The Next Generation.]

Cyrus has also been the subject of many television specials that detail his rise to fame and his career. These include two ABC documentaries, [Billy Ray Cyrus: Dreams Come True] and [Billy Ray Cyrus: A Year on the Road,] a VH1 exclusive, as well as the TNN specials, [I Give My Heart To You,] and [The Life and Times of Billy Ray Cyrus.]

In late 2005, Cyrus and his daughter, Miley Cyrus, began co-starring in the Disney Channel original television series, [Hannah Montana,] which premiered on March 24, 2006.

In March 2007, Cyrus joined several other celebrities to take part in the fourth season of the U.S. version of [Dancing with the Stars.] He and his partner Karina Smirnoff, were eliminated in the eighth week after having also placed in the "bottom two" the week before.

In October 2007, Cyrus and daughter Miley, performed a duet version of the song, "Ready, Set, Don't Go," on Dancing with the Stars. The duet (it was origanally released as a solo) of the song debuted at #27 on the Country charts and eventually peaked at #4 in 2008; giving Billy Ray his first Top 5 single since "Busy Man," in 1999, as well as Miley's first Top 5 on any [Billboard] chart.

In 2006, Billy Ray appeared with metal-rock group Metal Skool (now Steel Panther), and performed several songs including "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol, and the song "I Want My Mullet Back," which appears on his album, [Wanna Be Your Joe.]

He also sang "The Star Spangled Banner" at Game 5 of the 2006 World Series in St. Louis, Missouri.

On November 12, 2008, Billy Ray and Miley presented the [Song of the Year] award at the 42nd Annual Country Music Association Awards. Prior to the award show, both Billy Ray and Miley performed on Good Morning America. In December 2008, Cyrus made a cameo appearance in Metro Station's video, "Seventeen Forever."

In early 2009, Cyrus, Phil Vassar, Jeffrey Steele and John Waite formed a new supergroup together called, [Brother Clyde.] The first single from the new album is called "Lately."

Cyrus co-starred in Jackie Chan's movie [The Spy Next Door] (2010).

Marriage and children: From 1986 to 1991, Cyrus was married to Cindy Smith, with whom he co-wrote the songs "Wher'm I Gonna Live?" and "Some Gave All," both of which were featured on his 1992 debut album [Some Gave All.]

On December 28, 1992, he married Leticia "Tish" Finley. Together they have three children, daughters Miley Ray (born Destiny Hope), Noah Lindsey, and son Braison Chance. He also has two adopted stepchildren, Trace (born 1989) (singer/guitarist for the group, Metro Station) and Brandi (born 1987), and he also has one son from a previous relationship, Christopher Cody (born 1992). Cyrus adopted Brandi and Trace when they were young children.

In a 2004 interview on ABC News: Primetime, Cyrus stated that daughter Miley (conceived with Finley) and son Christopher (conceived with Kristin Luckey) were both born in 1992, at which time Cyrus was unmarried, and that he and Finley secretly married on December 28, 1992. ____________________________________________________________________________ {1}The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a group which represents the recording industry distributors in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors, which the RIAA says "create, manufacture and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legitimate sound recordings produced and sold in the United States." The RIAA participates in the collection, administration and distribution of music licenses and royalties and is responsible for certifying sales silver (100,000), gold (500,000), platinum (1,000,000), and diamond (10,000,000) albums and singles in the USA.