Miley Cyrus reveals medical condition behind her raspy voice — and why she won’t fix it

Miley Cyrus reveals medical condition behind her raspy voice — and why she won’t fix it

Miley Cyrus’ raspy voice is no accident.

The Grammy winner, 32, revealed that her signature music sound is actually the result of having a vocal cord disorder called Reinke’s edema.

In her May 21 interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Cyrus described the disorder as “abuse of the vocal cords.”

Miley Cyrus performs at the 2024 Grammy Awards. Getty Images for The Recording Academy

“Being 21 and staying up and drinking and smoking and partying after every show does not help,” Cyrus said. “But also in my case, it does not cause it. So my voice always sounded like this — it’s a part of my unique anatomy.”

Miley Cyrus during her interview with Zane Lowe. Apple Music/Youtube

According to the Cleveland Clinic, Reinke’s edema is a benign condition that causes swelling in the vocal cords. It’s most common in females and with people who have a long-term history of smoking.

The “Flowers” singer explained that she has a “large polyp” on her vocal cords “which has given me a lot of the tone and the texture that has made me who I am.”

Miley Cyrus performs at Movistar Arena in Bogota, Colombia, in March 2022. Getty Images for MC
Miley Cyrus at the 2025 Met Gala. Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue

“But it’s extremely difficult to perform with,” she shared, “because it’s like running a marathon with ankle weights on.”

“Even when I’m talking sometimes, at the end of the day I’ll call my mom and she’ll go, ‘Oh, you sound like you’re talking through a radio,’” Cyrus continued. “And that’s how you know I’m really tired, because it creates that ultimate vocal fry.”

Miley Cyrus performs on New Year’s Eve in December 2021. NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Cyrus went on to call her condition a “blessing” as she explained why she has no plans to get surgery to fix it.

“My voice is super unique because of it, but I do have this Reinke’s edema and I have this large polyp on my cords, and I’m not willing to sever it ever, because the chance of waking up from a surgery and not sounding like myself is a probability,” she said.

“I really had it on my heart that I don’t speak and don’t really care to talk about this thing that’s really precious and really private to me,” she added. “But it is a real thing.”

Miley Cyrus at the Bud Light Super Bowl Music Festival in Los Angeles in February 2022. Getty Images for Bud Light

The “7 Things” singer also noted that her condition affects her touring.

“I don’t lip-synch,” she said. “I sing live, and these songs are big. I don’t write little songs.”

Cyrus has been busy promoting her upcoming visual album, “Something Beautiful,” out May 30.

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