Name a more iconic duo than Miley Cyrus and Joan Jett, I’ll wait! The Godmother of Punk dropped in for an attitude-packed acoustic rock sesh with the Tennessee pop icon on Jett’s deep cut “Different.” The chemistry was electric, with Jett holding down the acoustic riffery while the pair traded gritty punk rock verses on the 11 million view collab. Jett was 56 at the time of the recording, but she had no trouble keeping up in the punk biffo department with the then-21-year-old Cyrus.
At this point in her career, Cyrus was just starting to make her name as a more mature artist who was branching out into old school rock ‘n’ roll territory. “Different” is an early example of what an incredibly versatile performer and vocalist Smiley is, and she truly nailed the snarling punk rock vibe. The Music Man has to say that apart from this just being an absolutely cracking tune, it’s also a whole vibe to see how much fun the two stars are having rocking out together.
Cyrus uploaded the “Different” duet to her YouTube channel as part of her Backyard Sessions series. Fans were stoked on the pop star’s foray into punk rock and added comments such as “Man. Miley can really rock any genre at any time. Pop, rock, bluegrass, country, you name it. Love her” and “Miley’s voice goes so well with this type of music. Joan Jett never ages! Her voice sounds the same!”
With such fiery chemistry, it’s no surprise that Smiley and The Godmother of Punk had to team up again in the future. The pair rocked the Super Bowl pre-show TikTok Tailgate with a medley of “Bad Karma”, “Bad Reputation”, and “I Hate Myself for Loving You”. The highlights of their live collab were def the latter two tracks, which are Jett ‘80s classics. Jett has that one-of-a-kind voice that never goes outta style, and seeing her throw down live with her partner in crime Cyrus was a real treat.
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts dropped “Different” as the ninth track on their 2013 studio album Unvarnished. The Music Man readers might be interested to hear that the album marked a commercial return to form for Jett, as it hit number 47 on the Billboard 200. This marked the veteran punk rocker’s first entry on the chart since her 1990 effort The Hit List.