"Hoedown Throwdown" is a song performed by recording artist
Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus ( , born Destiny Hope Cyrus, November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and director. Regarded as a contemporary pop icon, Cyrus has been recognized for her evolving artistry and image reinventions. She is ...
. It was released as a promotional single on the
iTunes Store from the
soundtrack
A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...
for ''
Hannah Montana: The Movie'' on March 10, 2009. It was also pressed as a promotional single by
EMI Records
EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a British multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company EMI in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succes ...
. A
karaoke
is a type of interactive entertainment system usually offered in nightclubs and bars, where people sing along to pre-recorded accompaniment using a microphone.
Its musical content is an instrumental rendition of a well-known popular song. I ...
version is available in
the soundtrack's karaoke series. "Hoedown Throwdown" is an instructional dance song with a hybrid of
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
and
hip hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
. The choreography was designed by
Jamal Sims.
The song received a mixed critical reception, but enjoyed commercial success and became a top twenty hit in various nations including Australia, Canada, Ireland, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States. "Hoedown Throwdown" reached its highest international peak in the
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are ...
, at number ten. The single never received an official music video, but an excerpt from ''Hannah Montana: The Movie'' was used for promotion. Cyrus incorporated "Hoedown Throwdown" into the set list of her first worldwide concert tour, the
Wonder World Tour. The song was not released to radio in the U.S.
Background
"Hoedown Throwdown" was created for the 2009
musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serv ...
''Hannah Montana: The Movie'', in which Cyrus stars as a famous
pop star
A pop icon is a celebrity, character, or object whose exposure in popular culture is regarded as constituting a defining characteristic of a given society or era. The usage of the term is largely subjective since there are no definitively object ...
sent to reconnect with her Southern roots and family. The film's director,
Peter Chelsom
Peter Chelsom (born 20 April 1956) is a British film director, writer, and actor. He has directed such films as ''Hector and the Search for Happiness'', ''Serendipity'', and '' Shall We Dance?'' Peter Chelsom is a member of the British Academ ...
, felt the movie needed a big dance-number, similar to the "
Macarena
"Macarena" is a song by Spanish pop duo Los del Río, originally recorded for their 1993 album '' A mí me gusta''. A dance remix by the electropop group Fangoria was a success in Spain, and a soundalike cover version by Los del Mar became ...
" (1995) or the "
Funky Chicken" (1950s).
Chelsom knew he wanted a song in which Cyrus' character,
Miley Stewart
Miley Ray Stewart is a fictional character and central protagonist of the Disney Channel television series ''Hannah Montana'', portrayed by Miley Cyrus. She first appeared on television in the pilot episode " Lilly, Do You Want to Know a Secr ...
,
called dance steps that captured Cyrus' "real silliness physically" and her "great abandon".
In addition, Chelsom wanted the song to represent the two worlds of Stewart, the main theme of the film, by "combin
ngMiley Stewart's L.A. hip-hop/pop style with her country roots".
Because the song is an instructional
dance
Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...
song, it became an ongoing collaboration between Chelsom, choreographer Jamal Sims, Cyrus, and the song's songwriters, Adam Anders and Nikki Hasman. According to Chelsom, the collaborators referred to the song by the
working title
A working title is a preliminary name for a product or project. The usage is especially common in film and TV, gaming, music and publishing. It is often styled in trade publications as (wt) and is synonymous with production title and tentative ...
"The Project" "for the longest time" before naming it the "Hoedown Throwdown".
The song was also nick-named "Miley's Macarena".
Music and lyrics
"Hoedown Throwdown" merges from a hybrid of
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
and
hip hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
.
It is set in
common time
A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates the ...
with a moderate
tempo
In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
of 104
beats per minute
Beat, beats, or beating may refer to:
Common uses
* Assault, inflicting physical harm or unwanted physical contact
* Battery (crime), a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact
* Battery (tort), a civil wrong in common law of in ...
. "Hoedown Throwdown" is written in the key of
E♭ major
E-flat major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has three flats. Its relative minor is C minor, and its parallel minor is E minor, (or enharmonically D minor).
The E-flat major ...
. Cyrus' vocals span two
octave
In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...
s, from B♭
3 to F
5.
The song begins with an
intro
Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to:
General use
* Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music
* Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...
in which Cyrus repeats "Boom Boom clap, boom di-clap di-clap" four times. This line is reused in the song's
outro.
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
described the song as a tribute to "down-home family times".
Cyrus stated "Hoedown Throwdown" was one of those on the film's soundtrack that "is all about" her
Nashville
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
roots and "the reason why
he is who she is"
Dance
The dance for "Hoedown Throwdown" is heavily influenced by
line dancing
A line dance is a choreographed dance in which a group of people dance along to a repeating sequence of steps while arranged in one or more lines or rows. These lines usually face all in the same direction, or less commonly face each other.Knight, ...
and merges some
hip-hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
.
A video starring Cyrus and ''
Hannah Montana: The Movie''s choreographer Jamal Simms entitled "How to Do the Hoedown Throwdown", premiered on
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
on February 20, 2009.
The video features Cyrus and Simms, accompanied by several back-up dancers, in a pink room and sporting
workout attire. Throughout the evening, Cyrus and Simms executed and explained each dance move.
At the end of the night, Cyrus and Simms put together all of the dance steps at once into a competition entitled "Hoedown Throwdown Showdown".
Cyrus explained the dance required "semi-coordinat
on.
Ann Donahue of ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' said that she discovered "exactly how Cyrus' legion of preteen female fans is learning the dance:
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
onscreen, phone to ear, someone on phone offering encouragement amid occasional peals of laughter."
She also drew similarities to
Billy Ray Cyrus
William Ray Cyrus ( ; born August 25, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Having released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, he is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs cha ...
' choreography for "
Achy Breaky Heart
"Achy Breaky Heart" is a song written in 1990 by Don Von Tress. First released in 1991 by the Marcy Brothers with the title "Don't Tell My Heart", it was later recorded by American singer and actor Billy Ray Cyrus and released on his debut al ...
".
Reported by
MTV News
MTV News was the news production division of MTV. The service was available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network and an online news team. In 2016, MTV refreshed the MTV News brand to compete with the likes of BuzzFeed and ...
, the "Hoedown Throwdown," caused a sizable younger audience "jumping on the country
bandwagon".
In an interview with Just Jared, Cyrus said
Critical reception

The song received mixed reviews. Warren Truitt from
About.com
Dotdash Meredith (formerly The Mining Company, About.com and Dotdash) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, hom ...
described the song as Cyrus' "only misstep" in the
''Hannah Montana: The Movie'' soundtrack because of its "weird" merge of
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
and
hip-hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
"that sound
dlike
Disney's
The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
trying a ''liiittle'' bit too hard to cover all genres".
Heather Phares of
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
stated the song was the exception to Cyrus' usual husky and natural songs.
Phares added that "Hoedown Throwdown" was "goofy" and "feels more like a parody of down-home fun than a tribute to it".
''
The Baltimore Sun
''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local, regional, national, and international news.
Founded in 1837, the newspaper was owned by Tribune Publi ...
'' reviewer Chris Kahltenblach wrote that the song is "catchy as the law allows". Wesley Morris of ''
The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
'' praised the "Hoedown Throwdown" was "an epic line dance". Leah Greenblatt of ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' described the song as "
deep-fried
Deep frying (also referred to as deep fat frying) is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot fat, traditionally lard but today most commonly oil, as opposed to the shallow frying used in conventional frying done in a frying pan. N ...
..sort of goofy ''Hee Haw''".
However, Owen Gleiberman, also of ''Entertainment Weekly'', called Cyrus a "professional charmer" and found that "it's hard to resist when she leads a hip-hop hoedown". ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' reviewer Michael Rechtshaffen wrote that the song was a "misguided attempt at marrying Hannah's contemporary pop/hip-hop sound with the
Grand Ole Opry
The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a regular live country music, country-music Radio broadcasting, radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM (AM), WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the ...
" and that it was "squirm-inducing". Meanwhile, Mary McNamara, writing for the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'', called the "Hoedown Throwdown" one of the few "flashes of inspiration" in ''Hannah Montana: The Movie'' and ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' magazine's Lael Lowenstein referred to it as a "pleasing, rousing, toe-tapping, line-dancing hoedown." The song was included on the
short list
A short list or shortlist is a list of candidates for a job, prize, award, political position, etc., that has been reduced from a longer list of candidates (sometimes via intermediate lists known as "long lists"). The length of short lists varie ...
for
Best Original Song
The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best ...
at the
82nd Academy Awards
The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2009 and took place on March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, beginning at 5:30 p.m. ...
.
Chart performance
Due to digital sales, the song debuted at number sixty-eight in the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the week ending March 21, 2009.
The song then found new peaks at number forty-six and twenty-eight on the chart, respectively. For the week ending May 2, 2009, "Hoedown Throwdown" peaked at number eighteen on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 due to digital downloads that placed it at number eight on
Hot Digital Songs
The Digital Song Sales (previously named Digital Songs and Hot Digital Songs) ranks the best-selling digital songs in the United States, as compiled by Luminate and published by ''Billboard'' magazine. Although it originally started tracking so ...
.
The song also peaked at number twenty-nine in the canceled
Pop 100
The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009. It ranked songs based on airplay on Mainstream Top 40 radio stations, singles ...
chart.
As of July 2013, it has sold 1,300,000 copies in the United States.
In Canada, the song peaked at number fifteen.
In the
Australian Singles Chart
The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...
, the song debuted at number forty and peaked at number twenty after three weeks of finding new peaks.
"Hoedown Throwdown" was
certified gold
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
by the
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival Records (Australia), Festival, Sony Music ...
(ARIA) for the sales of over 35,000 digital downloads.
"Hoedown Throwdown" debuted and peaked at number forty in the
New Zealand Singles Chart
The Official Aotearoa Music Charts, formerly the Official New Zealand Music Chart (), is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The M ...
.
In the United Kingdom, the song debuted at number sixty-two for the week ending March 18, 2009.
It peaked at number eighteen for the week ending May 16, 2009.
The song reached its highest international peak in Ireland. It entered the
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are ...
on the week ending May 7, 2009, both debuting and peaking at number ten.
In mainland Europe, "Hoedown Throwdown" peaked at number fifty in the
European Hot 100
The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...
and at number seventeen in the
Norwegian Singles Chart
VG-lista is the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from Norwegian and international artists. It is presented weekly in the newspaper '' VG''. The data is collected by Nielsen Soundscan International and based on the sale ...
.
The song also reached charts in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland.
Music video
The song's music video, directed by
Peter Chelsom
Peter Chelsom (born 20 April 1956) is a British film director, writer, and actor. He has directed such films as ''Hector and the Search for Happiness'', ''Serendipity'', and '' Shall We Dance?'' Peter Chelsom is a member of the British Academ ...
, is an excerpt from ''
Hannah Montana: The Movie'' which premiered on February 16, 2009 on
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
.
The video begins with a black background and blue printed letters that spell "boom". Other words appear, ultimately spelling the phrase "boom, clap, boom dee clap". A quick montage of
Hannah Montana
''Hannah Montana'' is an American teen sitcom created by Michael Poryes, Rich Correll, and Barry O'Brien that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on Miley Stewart (played by Miley Cy ...
and
Miley Stewart
Miley Ray Stewart is a fictional character and central protagonist of the Disney Channel television series ''Hannah Montana'', portrayed by Miley Cyrus. She first appeared on television in the pilot episode " Lilly, Do You Want to Know a Secr ...
are played. It then skips to the video's main setting. Cyrus is at a crowded
barn
A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Allen G ...
, wearing a
plaid blouse, jean skirt, and boots, on top of a stage. Blue printed letters that spell the lyrics then make an appearance, as Cyrus attempts to teach the crowd the dance. After the crowd learns the dance routine, scenes of
Mitchel Musso
Mitchel Tate Musso (born July 9, 1991) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his three Disney Channel roles as Oliver Oken in ''Hannah Montana''; Jeremy Johnson in the animated series ''Phineas and Ferb''; and his Disney XD r ...
,
Moises Arias Moises or Moisés is a male name common among people of Iberian origin. It is the Spanish, Portuguese and Tagalog equivalent of the name Moses.
Notable people bearing the name include:
* Moisés (footballer, born 1948) (1948–2008), Brazilia ...
,
Vanessa Williams
Vanessa Lynn Williams (born March 18, 1963) is an American singer, actress, model, producer and dancer. She gained recognition as the first Black woman to win the Miss America title when she was crowned Miss America 1984. She would later Vanes ...
,
Tyra Banks
Tyra Lynne Banks (born December 4, 1973), also known as BanX, is an American model, television personality, producer, writer, and actress. Born in Inglewood, California, she began her career as a model at the age of 15 and was the first Black A ...
,
Jason Earles
Jason Daniel Earles (born April 26, 1977) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Jackson Stewart in the Disney Channel sitcom ''Hannah Montana'' and his role as Rudy Gillespie in the Disney XD series ''Kickin' It''.
Early life
Earles ...
, and
Emily Osment
Emily Jordan Osment (born March 10, 1992) is an American actress, singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Osment began her career as a child actress, appearing in numerous television shows and films, before co-starring as Gerti Gi ...
doing the "Hoedown Throwdown" are played. When Cyrus' scene reappears she is off the stage and performing with the rest of the crowd. In the conclusion, Cyrus finishes singing onstage and the audience applauds.
Live performances
Cyrus never sang "Hoedown Throwdown" live during televised events, but often performed the dance with the track on
playback. On April 3, 2009, Cyrus performed "Hoedown Throwdown" on ''
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the fourth and sixth installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Jay Leno, it aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009, replacing ''The Ton ...
''.
Cyrus performed the dance on ''
Good Morning America
''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...
'' on April 8, 2009.
On April 10, 2009, Cyrus danced to the track with some of the movie's castmates on ''
The Tyra Banks Show
''The Tyra Banks Show'', also known as and shortened to ''Tyra'' or ''The Tyra Show'', is an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks that aired from 2005 to 2010.
While Banks's show covered a variety of topics, there was a sensationalized focus ...
''.
Preceded by a performance of "
Let's Get Crazy" as herself and succeeded by "These Four Walls", Cyrus performed "Hoedown Throwdown" as part of her set list in her first worldwide concert tour, the
Wonder World Tour. For the performances Cyrus dressed in a short white
tutu-like dress and performed the dance with her background dancers.
Mid-way through the song,
will.i.am
William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "will I am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is the frontman of the musical group Black Eyed Peas, which he ...
appeared on the screens to congratulate Cyrus and continued speaking as she left the stage. When he finished, the dancers performed to a remix of "
Boom Boom Pow
"Boom Boom Pow" is a song recorded by American group the Black Eyed Peas for their fifth studio album '' The E.N.D.'' (2009). It was written by group members will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and Fergie, being produced by will.i.am. The song featur ...
" by
The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American musical group formed in Los Angeles in 1995, composed of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo (rapper), Taboo. Fergie (singer), Fergie was a member during the height of their popularity in the 2000s, and ...
.
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
External links
*
The official website of ''Hannah Montana: The Movie''*
{{authority control
2009 singles
Miley Cyrus songs
Songs written by Adam Anders
Walt Disney Records singles
2009 songs
American hip-hop songs
American country music songs
Songs about dancing
Country rap songs