Braison Cyrus On Finding His Sound With New Single, “Know This”

Braison Cyrus is giving himself time for his moment.

The 31-year-old singer-songwriter has been working hard to clearly define the sound and genre that he’d like to share with the world. Though he’s proud of the music he’s created before – his 2021 album, Javelina, was a culmination of all the things he loved – Cyrus realized he needed to focus on one element of who he is.

“What I’ve done in the past was everything I liked,” Cyrus says over Zoom from his home in Nashville, Tennessee. “I love everything I’ve done, but one thing that I’ve learned is that rather than doing [all the sounds and styles that] I like, I want to do one thing and do it really well.”

His new single, “Know This,” which features his sister, Grammy-winning singer Miley Cyrus, is out now, marking a new era of music for Braison Cyrus. It also marks the first time Cyrus is working with his big sister.

Below, Cyrus discusses how the single came about, what the song means to him, working with Miley, what kind of music he wants to create, and his future plans.

Laura Sirikul: Tell me about the single, “Know This.” How did this song come about?

Braison Cyrus: Once I decided this collection of songs would become an album, I had a lot of people tell me that I needed something with more energy. So I got together with a songwriter friend of mine named Jordan Lindley, and we were like, “Let’s make it so over the top and fun.” I usually focus on lyrics first and foremost. But, for this song, it was more, “let’s make it upbeat and fun.” We did it in about an hour, which is my preferred time to write a song because it means that I wasn’t thinking about the lyrics as much. I wasn’t trying to focus on that. I was just trying to focus on bringing something that had a lot of energy.

I mean, the lyrics are pretty meaningful: “I’m making up new reasons in my mind, but I’m already gone.” What is the meaning behind the song to you?

I went back and changed [the lyrics] because we were just singing the same line over and over again in the chorus. Then we went back later, once we had the right kind of energy dialed in, and tailored the lyrics to fit. We had the energy of it first, then we went back and said, “Okay, now let’s try actually to dive in and make something.”

My family grew up in the area south of Nashville, known as Franklin. It’s gotten a lot bigger over the years, but it was relatively small and south of Nashville. We moved to Los Angeles when I was about to start high school. I would say, especially with the chorus, it was kind of about LA. The verses are, weirdly enough, about Franklin. It was a mix of leaving Franklin to move to LA, then leaving LA to move back to Nashville. The verses were more about my hometown, whereas the chorus felt more like it was about LA.

You’ve worked with many artists on music, “Here in the Middle” with Sierra Lundy, Fleet Foxes, Old Sea Brigade, Steve Earle, Orville Peck, [your sister] Noah Cyrus, and [your dad] Billy Ray Cyrus. What made this song the one to sing with Miley Cyrus, and why now?

Honestly, we had recorded the entire song – full production and everything – and then I just said, “There’s this power missing from it.” I [thought], “Who could I ask to deliver [this] power behind it?” I was sitting there racking my brain, and then it popped into my head. Even my engineer, who was working on the record, said [the same thing]. We both said “Miley” at the exact same time, because it’s one of those things where somehow, even though it’s the closest thing to you, it’s not the first thing you would think of for some reason. But once I said it, there’s nobody who could probably even deliver the kind of power to it that she has vocally. So, I texted her the next day, and she said, “Yes, send me the stems.” I expected her just to send me one file, but she sent me back 15 files to stack up on top of each other. This is awesome. I remember listening to it without the track behind it, and [hearing] her harmony, her stack, and all of that stuff, [thinking] this is perfect. I put it in immediately. I’m a reverb addict, and I left her stuff as dry as possible because I just want to hear the raw power of it. There are very few people that I would describe vocally as having the kind of power she does.

Will a music video be released for this single? Or an acoustic video that we will see, or a live performance with Miley?

We’ll find something really cool to do. That’s all I’ll say about it.

It’s been 2021 since you released an album, Javelina, which was a blend of psychedelic, folk, and Americana alt-country. What can we expect from you in terms of new music, and what sounds/blends of genre would you’d like to have for this new album?

For this album, I focused on the lyrics, acoustic guitar, melodies, and stuff like that. Then, I built everything up around that as a foundation. I feel like before, this was a consequence of not producing any of my own stuff in the past, [I didn’t have that foundation that I built myself]. But, producing this record for the first three or four months, entirely on my own, was a chance to build a foundation that I constructed brick by brick, and did everything intentionally. Then I would be like, “You know what, this is cool, but this doesn’t belong here. This should go away. It’s distracting from something else.”

I want to clearly define what I’m good at and what makes people happy to listen to and do more of that. Since 2021, my main goal has been to make people happy and have a song that they can listen to in the car, on a bike path, on a hike, or whatever. [Just songs that] make them happy and pass the time. That’s kind of my goal.

When you say clearly defined, what would you say is your sound now, at this moment?

For this record, I would say – folk pop music, hopefully. I think about the influences I have and all the people singing on them. Maybe it’s just as simple as that, like pop music, but on an acoustic guitar. I think full pop music is where my head’s at right now.

You mentioned other people singing on it. Who can we expect? Or who can you hint to us?

Maybe another family member down the road. Tyler Ramsey from Band of Horses. My co-writer Jordan Lindley. Old Sea Brigade. I’m trying to think. I think that’s pretty much it, but yeah, other family members may pop up.

Are there any additional collaborations you’d like to pursue, especially with your family? Maybe future family albums?

That’s a tough one. Two of my all-time favorite artists are Regina Spektor and Imogen Heap. I think my dream collaboration would be with Imogen Heap.

What plans can we expect? Do you have any plans to tour at small venues or cafes? Where can we see you perform these songs?

We’re starting to get to that phase now. We’re looking into it. If we do go on tour or play at festivals, we would want to deliver the best and most fun show possible. We’re figuring that out. I know we’re going to be popping up at festivals and going on the road as well.

Braison Cyrus’ new single “Know This,” featuring Miley Cyrus, is out now on all streaming platforms.