Recently, Disney announced that Miley Cyrus will be one of 14 individuals honored as a Disney Legend. As a result, Cyrus is the youngest person in history and the first of her generation to receive the company’s honor. Looking back at Cyrus’s journey as an entertainer, it is an understatement to say that she impacted our generation.

Other honorees include Angela Bassett and Jamie Lee Curtis. For almost four decades, Disney has honored members of the Disney community from animators to actors, and more for the impact they’ve had on the Disney legacy. Additionally, the honorees will officially be celebrated at the D23: The Ultimate Fan Event, which takes place this summer.

As someone who is in my early 20’s, I can confidently say that I do not know a life without Miley Cyrus. I had the privilege of watching her live the best of both worlds as Hannah Montana and make hit songs that will live on forever in my Disney playlist. Additionally, I witnessed all of Cyrus’s eras. And it’s definitely been a crazy, but fun ride.

Miley Cyrus’ Journey Throughout the Years

To transition from Disney child-star to an adult is no easy feat. People have expectations of how you should be. Similarly, people have opinions on how you should behave. And yet, Cyrus was always defiant of the norm.

She swung from wrecking balls, twerked on Robin Thicke and told us verbatim that she “can’t be tamed.” Cyrus is truly a force to be reckoned with.

In spite of all the criticism, Cyrus continues to grow as an individual and as an artist. We see this through her divorce from Liam Hemsworth and how she handles controversy, such as her “beef” with Nicki Minaj in 2015.

Most recently, she celebrated her first Grammy for Record of the Year for her hit “Flowers”.

Miley Cyrus has been and continues to be a legend. This is not just in the context of Disney, but as a public figure. She has shown us what it means to grow up in the limelight, fall and pick herself back up. It’s only right that she is the first of our generation to receive this award.

As more Disney stars transition into adulthood, hopefully they can look to Cyrus as inspiration to not let critics shape how they grow into their image of what it means to be a woman. Hopefully, they will feel liberated to take risks, make mistakes and create their own rules. That’s what it means to grow up, and Cyrus showed all of us, including myself that it’s all part of the journey of life.

In the wise words of Miley Cyrus, “This is our party we can do what we want.” And most importantly, “We run things, things don’t run we.” #IYKYK