DC ExtraTime: Is Miley Cyrus's Brother Cheating with That MTV Lover Girl?

BY DC CUEVA                         

■ @DC408DXTR  @ IG/YT/SC/TB/TK

MTV-Related Photos Courtesy MTV

This Thursday night, the bubble of a hotel rented out by MTV's most beloved family ever, the cast of Jersey Shore, will have their fourth Vacation and tenth overall season be crashed by the arrival of someone who we last saw just a few short months ago in Las Vegas. The lost summer of 2020 saw us have to spend those warm days & nights be trapped at home, but it didn't deter us from having fun in watching those sights of things we desperately need come to us by way of the capital of adult freedom.

A Double Shot at Love debuted in spring 2019 in between the second and third seasons of the Jersey comeback tour as the attention turned to the two remaining bachelors in this dysfunctional family, DJ Pauly D and Vinny Guadagnino as they sought to find their perfect match. After the stunning twist of that first season in the battle to win the hearts of the bromance, DSAL returned for Season 2 last year as the attention turned to having the most epic summer ever in the heart of the Southern Nevada desert. And in a summer without Are You The One or Ex On The Beach, we were more than entertained by the Shore franchise's hybrid of love, fist pumps and hiliarity... and even help to manage a day/nightclub located right on the Strip.

But before Nikki Hall comes walking into the hotel to spend quality time with Pauly, we have a perfect segue way to her visit to Hotel Jersey: someone who she was closest to the past two years -- and one who was the only familiar face other than the bromance to walk into the DSAL mansion two years ago -- is now following in the footsteps of some of her fellow contemporaries in the land of MTV love in making some moves. And for here, it's a member of one of the most renowned musical families of recent memory, the first big moment of which came during that rad decade of the '90s.

Thirty years ago, a man from Northeastern Kentucky was given the chance to record a song previously performed by a defunct bluegrass act which he would turn into his own for his debut album. When Billy Ray Cyrus released "Achy Breaky Heart" in early 1992, a song considered one of the worst ever vaulted him to the top of the charts, helped introduce a younger audience to the country music genre, turned the line dance into a staple of any wedding reception, and began his family's incredible rise to prominence. 

   Billy & wife Leticia Jean Finley have been able to raise six kids, half of them becoming musical stars in their own right. Of course, the world knows a lot about the most well-known of those siblings in Miley thanks to her Disney resume during her younger years and helping to bring twerking to the mainstream, among her many accomplishments. And a few years ago, Noah Cyrus would launch a budding musical career that's already seen her be nominated for a Grammy for Best New Artist.

Facebook/Trace Cyrus

Someone perhaps not as well known as his dad or sister is Trace Cyrus, who was born as Neil Helson as son to his dad Baxter, but who was then adopted by his mom's second husband Billy as he lived with the Cyrus family in Tennessee. It was after his adoption that his name was legally changed to Trace, and who would then spend his holidays from school performing with the Achy Breaky king and who would then collaborate with sister Miley on her debut album while working at a shopping mall and adorning his body with tattoos all over.

   In 2006, Trace co-wrote a song for his dad's album Wanna Be Your Joe entitled "Country Music Has The Blues" which featured country legends Loretta Lynn and George Jones. But then, his musical tastes shifted from Nashville to the other end of the spectrum: while on the set of his sister's Disney Channel show Hannah Montana, Trace got to meet up with co-star Mitchel Musso's brother Mason, and it was after that that their parents suggested that they'd do some jamming together.

   That turned into pop rock band Metro Station, which Trace and Mason formed as a result of those jam sessions along with two other friends, Blake Healy and Anthony Improgo. In typical 2000s fashion, they released their music to MySpace in the hopes of landing a label deal, and Columbia Records and imprint Red Ink won out after an intern at the label discovered their page. Metro Station's self-titled debut album dropped in April 2008 and included the hit "Shake It," which brought them into the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 in America and in eight other countries.

   It earned them a double platinum record plaque from the RIAA, spots on American Idol, the 90210 reboot, commercials, shows and even in a 2010 viral video of a young man proposing to his girlfriend as part of a flash mob in a New York City park. "Shake It" would turn out to be Metro Station's only hit as, after contributing to the soundtrack of the update to Disney's Alice in Wonderland, as well as touring with Good Charlotte and Boys Like Girls, they would take a hiatus to explore solo projects before reuniting sporadically in the years since including last year.

   Aside from collaborating with dad Billy Ray - which also includes being part of a song on his 2010 album, Trace's projects outside of Metro Station have seen him appear in Miley's Breakout album, collaborating with the Millionaires and forming pop band Ashland High. He's also had an on-and-off relationship with Brenda Song of Freeform's The Suite Life of Zack & Cody during the 2010's, and last year he broke another engagement off with Taylor Lauren Sanders just after Miley went through her public breakup and divorce from Liam Hensworth.

   In the course of the past eighteen months along with breaking up with Taylor, Trace has found music to be a solstice from what's been going on in the Cyrus family: he released four singles during the 2019-2020 period, and he rang in the new year with dropping a collaboration with Lil Johnnie called "Nighttime." Last week, he dared his Instagram followers to get him to 500 comments on one of his photos, and when it reached the magic number he dropped a new music video and song... and that's where the MTV link comes into play.

It might feel somewhat strange that the star of Season 7 of Are You The One? was the one who actually had the shortest stay in paradise during the 2018 quest for love & money in lasers and lights. Maria Elizondo was chosen for this "Season of Fate" -- the one with no challenges for getaway dates and where Truth Booth choices were picked at random by a button, and who came to Hawaii aiming to reverse her fortunes when it comes to romance.

   Her AYTO bio read, "Maria is a self-sufficient Jersey college student with eyes on a communications degree, and who has a sharp wit and a take-no-prisoners persona. It's not the case when it comes to love, where she falls in love at a finger's snap... and when you mix in emotionally unavailable guys she's often attracted to, it's a recipe for a relationship from hell. And because of that, Maria fears letting men get close to her and trusts her instincts to break it off before he gets a true shot. Now, will she move from hurt feelings and find that man who'll finally open up to her?"

   Maria came into that house, but before we knew it by week 3 she was already on her way to the Honeymoon Suite, quicker than anyone else in the eight seasons of AYTO when she was matched up to Shamoy... but that romance didn't turn out to be perfect once they flew out of paradise. And so, she was given another chance to win love, this time on A Double Shot at Love, and their bio wrote of her, "This AYTO alum is ready to give love another shot -- even if she is a bit scared to open up again. One thing she isn't afraid to do is confront anyone who's causing problems. Maria isn't just another pretty face, she's a college student who loves to nerd out on strange topics. Can this Jersey girl make the most of her second time on TV and win the heart of either Pauly D or Vinny?"

   From the get-go, Maria became attracted to the ladder as her confident and quirky personality made a big impression on the Keto Guido. And though the chemistry of #Marinny (or #Vinaria, depending on what you might prefer the ship to be called) was a no doubter, Vinny would sent Maria to the curb and the cabs awaiting her late in the season when he felt a deeper connection with the other suitors in the house, preferring to not want to lead her on. And once he and Pauly decided to keep their final roses, there were plenty of words in 280 chars. or less awaiting Vinny at the reunion and after the season.

Once he invited her to come to Las Vegas to try and see if that old adage that the third time is indeed the charm, Maria more than accepted that invitation and by the time they left the Strip things ended a bit more amicably than it was a year earlier. And below, some highlights of the Sin City summer - both entertaining and awkward...

It's that history of finding love on three overall MTV seasons that appealed to Trace in inviting her to be in the new music video that dropped last week entitled "Typical Suspect." The clip sees him bringing home not one, not two, but THREE girls to his house including Maria. And when something like that happens, you know it will not end well... find out below as this Cyrus brother gets caught cheating in a clip that has the approval, from the YouTube comments section at least, of Chad Tepper - a friend of Jake Paul's who is an MTV alum himself and who shared a pool full of Icy Hot gel with fellow AYTO alum turned mom (and Cory Wharton's Ex On The Beach girlfriend) Taylor Selfridge.

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