Miley Cyrus and Billy Ray Cyrus Remember Tom Petty With "Wildflowers" Cover

The younger Cyrus invites her father to join her for a Tonight Show performance

By Zach Johnson Oct 06, 2017 12:35 PMTags

Miley Cyrus honored Tom Petty's legacy on The Tonight Show Thursday.

Petty died Monday after going into cardiac arrest; the singer-songwriter was 66 years old. As Miley said on The Howard Stern Show Wednesday, "It's just really hard for me, watching those people that I grew up with leaving." She sang a cover of "Wildflowers," telling Howard Stern, "The reason why I chose this song is because it's hopeful—it's hopeful rather than mourning."

Miley performed the song again on Jimmy Fallon's late-night show, this time backed by her father, Billy Ray Cyrus. "You ready, dad?" Miley asked Billy Ray before singing the final refrain.

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Tom Petty: A Life in Pictures
Andrew Lipovsky/NBC

The "Younger Now" singer isn't the only artist to pay tribute to Petty after his death. On Monday, Sheryl Crow dedicated her concert at the espnW Women + Sports Summit to the rocker, and Coldplay brought out R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck to perform one of his classics, "Free Fallin'," in Portland. The following night, Steve Earle, Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris and Dave Matthews got together to cover Tom Petty and the Heartbreaker's "Refugee" in Seattle.

The Los Angeles County coroner's office completed Petty's autopsy Tuesday, but his cause of death will require further examination. According to reports, he had not seen a doctor in six months. Foul play is not suspected, and toxicology results will not be ready for several weeks.

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