Miley Cyrus' 'Flowers' Is Packed With References to Liam Hemsworth

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published 16 January 2023

Miley Cyrus has always been iconic, obviously, but her latest song is driving fans into an absolute frenzy.

The singer released "Flowers" on Jan. 13, and not only is this self-love anthem catchy as all heck, but it also contains reference after reference to her ex-husband Liam Hemsworth.

Let's start with the low-hanging fruit: Jan. 13 is Hemsworth's birthday, so I'll let you draw your own conclusions with that one.

Next up is the fact that her lyrics mirror Bruno Mars' "When I Was Your Man," a song which fans allege Hemsworth once dedicated to Cyrus, though it doesn't seem like there's any evidence for this claim.

On his song, Mars sings about all the things he would have done for his ex if he'd realized what he stood to lose while they were together.

He sings: "I should've bought you flowers / And held your hand / Shoulda gave you all my hours / When I had the chance / Take you to every party / 'Cause all you wanted to do was dance"

On "Flowers," Cyrus says that she doesn't need a man to do all those things for her.

She sings: "I can buy myself flowers / Write my name in the sand / Talk to myself for hours / Say things you don't understand / I can take myself dancing / And I can hold my own hand / Yeah, I can love me better than you can"

Did I mention this is iconic?

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 07: Miley Cyrus attends the Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 7, 2018 in New York City.

Anyway, people on social media are super on board with this new Miley Cyrus era.

"miley cyrus' flowers really boosting the inner independent woman in me—yes girl, i can buy myself flowers," one person tweeted.

"Omfg Miley releasing flowers on Liam's bday is so petty I LOVE it," said someone else.

"Miley Cyrus taking Bruno Mars' If I Was Your Man (with permission) and releasing a response on her ex's birthday after he dedicated it to her on their wedding day & then cheated on her is QUEEN BEHAVIOUR," wrote someone else.

(Note: Neither Cyrus nor Hemsworth has addressed rumors that he cheated, so please take all references to cheating with a large scoop of salt.)

Someone else got very excited about this whole thing, writing, "Me explaining to the Trader Joe’s employee how Flowers by Miley Cyrus has the same tune as When I Was Your Man By Bruno Mars and her chorus lyrics being a response to Bruno’s chorus lyrics because Liam Hemsworth dedicated that song to her once is pop culture HERSTOTY!!!!"

Another person explained how helpful this song might be for people going through breakups. "I love that Miley’s song ‘Flowers’ encourages being petty post breakup. I can honestly say the small petty shit I did after my breakup seriously helped me heal and move on. I think back and smile at those moments," they wrote.

Cyrus and Hemsworth were on and off from 2010 to 2019, and married from December 2018 to August 2019, per People.

The Hannah Montana alum has been very open and vulnerable about the breakdown of their relationship over the years, both in interviews and through her music.

She even released a music video in 2021 in which she told her exes to "eat sh*t," so.

Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Bustle and Shape. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.