Billy Ray Cyrus first became famous in the early 90s due to his hit song ‘Achy Breaky Heart’. While he enjoyed a successful music career, the country singer has largely maintained a low profile in the past years except for his work on his daughter Miley Cyrus’ former Disney show ‘Hannah Montana’.
But it looks like he’s back in the music spotlight once again with the domination at the charts of his new collaborative song ‘Old Town Road’ with rapper Lil Nas X. And with this newfound fame resurgence, the now-57-year-old singer has dedicated himself to getting a former baseball player the recognition he thinks he deserves.
Billy’s Campaign
The player in question is no other than ‘Charlie Hustle’ himself Pete Rose who played the sport professionally from 1963 to 1986.
Speaking in a recent episode of the South Beach Sessions podcast, the musician talked about the similarities between the movement of his latest song with the movement he created for Rose. According to Cyrus, he began it early in July when ‘Old Town Road’ was enjoying its 14th week at No. 1. Apparently, he saw a picture of the player and was reminded of what Rose used to mean to him and the tri-state area. He even said that he thought Rose deserves to be among those in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.
However, Cyrus’ campaign will certainly not be easy considering the fact that Rose was hit with permanent ineligibility from baseball in 1989 after he was accused of gambling in the sport during his time as a player and manager. This means that he is also banned from being inducted.
Baseball Background
So, why is Cyrus, a country musician, invested in the matter? Well, apparently, he has some background in the sport as well. In fact, he even got an athletic scholarship for baseball when he went to college at Georgetown University. What more, he says he grew up in Kentucky playing the sport and watching Rose at his prime.
He eventually switched careers to become a singer. However, his love for the sport still influences the way he sees things. In the same podcast, Cyrus said that life is just like baseball. What more, he shared a lesson he learned from his idol: ‘when you get knocked down, you get back up’.
Not Updated
In the end, though, Cyrus admitted that he isn’t that up to date with the current goings-on in the sport. But he did leave a ‘voice message’ for Rose saying how he’s looking forward to speaking with him and telling him about how much he meant to the singer. He also wished him safe travels and informed him that Cyrus’ own mother and mother-in-law even made messages for the former player.