Billy Ray Cyrus On Miley: ‘I Wasn’t There When They Took The Controversial Photograph’

Setting the record straight, Billy Ray Cyrus once again confirmed he was not around when his daughter, Miley, posed provocatively for Vanity Fair and famed photographer Annie Leibovitz.

During a new interview with Access Hollywood on Tuesday, Billy Ray said he was not on the set when his 15-year-old daughter wrapped herself in a blanket for the now infamous shots.

“I wasn’t there when they took the controversial photograph,” Billy Ray told Access. “I took my picture with Miley and then had to go catch a flight, so I wasn’t there.”

As it turns out, Billy has just finished shooting a movie in Florida and was scheduled to perform for the troops in back-to-back gigs in Washington, D.C., and Alaska at the time of the photoshoot.

But when Liebovitz requested Miley’s dad be featured in one of the photos, he changed his travel plans.

“Annie had asked if I could be there for one picture, so I rerouted my deal and came into LA, jumped in, took my pictures, said ‘Hello’ to my family and then I was off to go play for the troops,” Billy Ray noted.

Following the shoot, which also featured a warm shot between father and daughter, a rep for Vanity Fair told Access Hollywood that although her parents did not have photo approval, they saw the photos right after they were taken and were pleased with them.

“Miley’s parents and/or minders were on the set all day. Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley,” Vanity Fair said in a statement to Access. “In fact, when Bruce Handy (who wrote the article the photos appear with) interviewed Miley, he asked her about the photo and she was very cheerful about it and thought it was perfectly fine.”

So while Billy Ray said he didn’t see the photo that day, what did dad think when he finally saw the shots of his daughter appearing to be wearing nothing more than a blanket?

“I thought it was a pretty cool photograph,” Billy Ray admitted. “You’ve got to keep in mind you’re talking about Annie Leibovitz. She’s a very artsy person and that’s what she does. I didn’t know they were going to strip her down and wrap her with a blanket. It’s just one of things, you know.”

Following the shoot, and the controversy which followed, Billy Ray said he was proud of the way Miley handled all of the attention.

“I think Miley dealt with it really well,” he told Access. “It was hard for everybody. Controversy is a bit scary.”

In comforting his young superstar daughter, Billy Ray called on the advice he had once received from a fellow celebrity.

“We went for a walk a few days later and I told Miley, I said, ‘Ya know, Kris Kristofferson told me years ago the turkey with the longest neck will be the one everybody will be shooting at,’” he explained. “She laughed about that and understood.”