Flowers – Miley Cyrus

We’re about two months (!!) away from Miley Cyrus’ new album, Endless Summer Vacation. But on January 13, the singer-songwriter blessed fans worldwide with the drop of her latest single, “Flowers.” The breakup anthem has earned Miley her biggest career streaming debut ever, according to ABC Audio. And on January 20 — one week after its release — it became the most-streamed song in a single week on Spotify *ever,* with over 83 million plays (and counting!).

Ofc, fans can’t stop theorizing about the message behind the bop — especially since it was released on Liam Hemsworth’s birthday, aka her ex-husband and on-and-off boyfriend of a decade. The couple split after eight months of marriage in 2019, and Miley has briefly opened up about their relationship in the years since, recently calling it, ahem, “a f**king disaster,” per E! News.

Given the empowering lyrics of “Flowers,” listeners believe that the song is a message to her ex.

Not only does the song seemingly make direct references to their relationship together, but it also interpolates with Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man,” which fans and multiple outlets claim Liam once dedicated to Miley.

But wait, there’s more! One user on Twitter, @OCHannahMontana, pointed out in a now-viral Tweet that the dance move Miley does at the beginning of the “Flowers” music video mirrors the one she once pulled on the red carpet with Liam.

In the video, a seemingly embarrassed Liam can be heard saying to Miley, “Don’t do it, don’t do it… We’re on the carpet.”

Here, we break down the full lyrics — and all of the references to Liam — in Miley’s latest single, “Flowers.”

The very first verse to “Flowers” appears to reference the devastating 2018 Woolsey fires in Malibu, California, in which Miley and Liam lost their home.

In a December 2020 interview on The Howard Stern Show, Miley revealed that if the fire never happened, she’s not sure if she and Liam would have ever married.

“Me being an intense person and not wanting to sit with it and not wanting to go, you know, ‘What could be purposeful about this?’ I just clung to what I had left of that house, which was me and him,” she said.

“And I really do and did love him very, very, very much and still do, always will.”

The bridge could reference the fallout of their relationship, which Miley addressed in the 2020 interview on The Howard Stern Show.

The artist shared that “there was too much conflict” in their relationship, per E! News, which led to their split. “When I come home, I want to be anchored by someone,” she said. “I don’t get off on drama or fighting.”