Lainey Wilson took the stage with a powerhouse performance at the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Thursday evening (March 26). The 13th annual show returned to Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California.

Fellow country artist Jason Aldean introduced Wilson to the stage, and she delivered a medley of three of her biggest hits: “Wildflowers and Wild Horses,” “Hang Tight Honey” and “Heart Like a Truck.” The award-winning country artist, 33, went on to pay tribute to another superstar who made a significant impact on her.

“Now I want to talk about one of my biggest inspirations, Miley Cyrus,” Wilson said after her iHeartRadio Music Awards performance, which took place days after she attended the Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special premiere. Wilson, a former Hannah Montana impersonator, said Cyrus’ success happens “when fearlessness meets evolution,” and applauded her for “redefin[ing] herself in front of [the world] over, and over, and over again, (and) breaking out of the box that people tried to put her in.

“She keeps taking risks that most artists would not dare to take… (and that) move culture forward,” Wilson continued. “Miley reminds us that artistry is not about staying comfortable. It is about staying honest. That is what you call innovation, folks. And that is Miley Cyrus.”

Cyrus, 33, went on to accept the iHeartRadio Innovator Award with a heartfelt acceptance speech (and a nostalgic nod to Hannah Montana, the breakout role that launchd her career two decades ago).

Wilson told Robin Roberts during the Lainey Wilson: Bell Bottom Country special in 2024 that she’d “had a teacher who asked me to put on a Hannah Montana wig and show up at her little girl’s birthday party. Well, of course, I took it too far. I had the wig. I had the portable sound system. And I would open up for myself. …I would be like, ‘Hey y’all, I’m Lainey Wilson, blah, blah, blah.’ I’d sing a few songs that I wrote, and then I’d go backstage or wherever the backstage area was — that might mean somebody’s bedroom at somebody’s house — and throw on my Hannah Montana getup and get out there, and put on like a 15-song concert. I mean, I would do 3-year-old birthday parties one day and I’d be playing (at a) nursing home the next day. So I had to learn, how you speak to 3-year-olds is not how you speak to the elderly. You know, like you have to learn your audience. And it taught me a lot.”

Wilson has since had a chance to meet Cyrus, including when she covered “The Best of Both Worlds,” a classic Hannah Montana anthem that served as the show’s theme song, in August 2024. Cyrus made history that evening as the youngest person to become a Disney Legend. She was 31. “Those full circle moments where you’re just like, ‘you can’t make this up,’ you know?” Wilson said during a recent appearance on No Filter, an Australia-based interview podcast hosted by Kate Langbroek. “I told her, I was like, Hannah Montana meant a lot to me. It kept some money in the bank for five years for me. She has influenced more people than I think that she even realizes. …I think she is a rock star. She’s a rock star.”

Check back with iHeartRadio for a live-updated list of winners, a photo gallery of stunning red carpet looks, recaps of unforgettable performances and other can’t-miss moments throughout the show.

Corey Klug