You remember the 2013 VMAs. The foam finger, the blurred lines, and the inescapable cloud of weed smoke that seemed to follow Miley Cyrus everywhere she went. For years, Miley Cyrus smoking wasn't just a habit; it was a central pillar of her brand. She was the "happy hippie" with a joint in her hand and a tongue wagging at the world. But if you haven't been paying close attention lately, the Miley of 2026 is a completely different person.
Honestly, the transition from being the poster child for marijuana to a sobriety advocate is one of the most drastic 180s in Hollywood history.
It wasn't just a PR stunt. It was a survival tactic.
The Real Reason Miley Walked Away From the Smoke
People love to speculate. They think she quit because of a bad trip or a stern talk from a manager. While there’s a grain of truth to the "bad trip" part—Miley famously told David Letterman in 2024 that her mom's weed was so strong she "didn't know who she was" for three days—the real catalyst was far more medical and grim.
In late 2019, Miley underwent major vocal cord surgery.
She was diagnosed with Reinke’s edema, a condition where the vocal folds swell with fluid. It’s often called "smoker’s voice" for a reason. Imagine trying to run a marathon with ankle weights on. That’s how Miley described singing with the condition. The years of "staying up and drinking and smoking and partying after every show," as she told Zane Lowe in early 2025, had finally caught up to her.
She had to choose: the smoke or the voice.
She chose the voice.
But it wasn't just about the physical mechanics of singing. Miley has been incredibly candid about the "27 Club." Having grown up in a family with a history of addiction and mental health challenges, hitting 27 felt like a finish line she wasn't ready to cross. She wanted to protect herself. She wanted to be "100% of the time, 100% of the person."
Is She Still "Mostly Sober" in 2026?
The biggest misconception about Miley Cyrus smoking is that she’s a rigid, "never again" kind of person. She’s not. She’s famously flexible, or as she puts it, "mostly sober."
- The Mom Factor: Tish Cyrus is a heavy smoker. Miley has joked that she sometimes "fakes it" to look cool for her mom, but actually hitting a joint? That's rare now.
- The Wiz Khalifa Incident: There’s a legendary story circulating that Tish’s weed was so potent it gave even Wiz Khalifa—a man who basically breathes THC—a panic attack. Miley took one "tiny puff" and was essentially out of commission for days.
- The CBD Shift: If she smokes anything now, it’s high-quality CBD. She’s mentioned it helps with anxiety without the "I don't know my own name" side effects of high-THC strains.
Actually, she views sobriety as her "God" now. That’s a heavy word. But when you’ve been a child star since age 11, constantly "on," constantly performing, the clarity of a sober brain is probably the closest thing to a religious experience you can get.
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The 2025 Relapse Rumors: What Actually Happened
Social media is a vacuum for nuance. Last year, when Miley announced she wouldn't be doing a massive world tour for Something Beautiful, people immediately jumped to the conclusion that she had relapsed.
"She can't handle the road because she's back on drugs," the comments sections screamed.
The reality? She’s protecting her peace. Miley admitted that the "physicality and the chemicals" produced by touring make it incredibly hard to stay sober. She’s choosing her mental health over a $100 million tour. That’s not a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of someone who knows their triggers.
The Impact on Her Art (The "Flowers" Effect)
You can hear the difference.
Go listen to Bangerz and then play End of the World from her 2025 sessions. The rasp is still there—that’s her "unique anatomy," as she calls it—but the control is different. "Flowers" was the first song she wrote completely sober. It became the biggest song of her career.
There’s a lesson there about "sober creativity."
Miley used to think she needed the substances to get into that "psychedelic" headspace. She's since realized that the drugs were just a mask for the trauma of being Hannah Montana. Now, she uses things like EMDR therapy and, wait for it... gardening.
Yeah. Miley Cyrus is a gardener now.
She told Pamela Anderson in an interview for CR Fashion Book that putting a seed in the ground is her "medicine." It's a creative outlet that has nothing to do with fame or whether a song goes #1 on Billboard.
What We Can Learn From the Miley Evolution
If you're looking at Miley’s journey and wondering how it applies to your own life—or maybe you're just trying to cut back on your own habits—there are some pretty solid takeaways here.
- Understand your "Why": Miley didn't quit because a PR person told her to. She quit because she wanted to save her voice and her life. External pressure usually fails; internal necessity usually sticks.
- The Environment Matters: She can't tour right now because the environment is too "high stress." If you’re trying to change a habit, you might have to change where you hang out.
- Forgive the Slip-ups: She’s been open about "falling one more time" during the 2020 lockdowns. She didn't let that one fall define the rest of her life. She used it as a "key to the lock of healing."
- Replace, Don't Just Remove: You can't just stop smoking and leave a hole. Miley replaced it with therapy, gardening, and a hyper-focus on her vocal health.
Miley Cyrus smoking is a chapter of her life that’s largely closed, but the "raspy" legacy remains. She’s not the wild child anymore. She’s a 33-year-old woman who’s figured out that waking up without a fog is the ultimate rockstar move.
To really see how her voice has changed post-smoking and post-surgery, listen to her live performances from the 2024 Grammy season versus her 2014 tour. The technical precision is night and day. If you're interested in the medical side of this, look into the long-term effects of Reinke’s edema and why vocal rest is the only real cure for a singer of her caliber.