Miley Cyrus just released her new single, "Flowers" — and many fans think the song takes aim at her ex-husband Liam Hemsworth.
Fans think "Flowers" is a dig at Hemsworth. Miley Cyrus/YouTuve
Miley Cyrus released the first single from her forthcoming album, "Endless Summer Vacation" on Thursday — and the song already has the internet buzzing.
Some fans are theorizing that the self-love anthem, "Flowers," is directed at Cyrus' ex-husband, Liam Hemsworth.
As Insider previously reported, Cyrus and Hemsworth met on the set of "The Last Song" in 2010 and dated on and off for several years. The couple married in 2018 and divorced a year later. The split was finalized in January 2020.
While Cyrus hasn't confirmed that "Flowers" is about her relationship with Hemsworth, the single's release date, lyrics, and other Easter eggs offer a few clues to the song's meaning.
The song was released on Liam Hemsworth's birthday.
"Flowers" became available on Jan. 13 — Liam Hemsworth's birthday. VALERIE MACON / Getty Images
The buzz around "Flowers" began when fans noticed its release date.
The new single dropped on Jan. 13 — Hemsworth's 33rd birthday — a detail that was not lost on Cyrus' fans.
"She definitely didn't lie when she said she's got nerve," one user tweeted.
Many fans think "Flowers" resembles Bruno Mars' song, "When I Was Your Man."
Fans have theorized that "Flowers" is based off of one of Bruno Mars' hit songs. Theo Wargo/Getty Images
In "When I Was Your Man," Mars sings that he wishes he "bought you flowers, and held your hand."
Although Mars isn't credited as a sample on the song, Cyrus sings "I can buy myself flowers," and "I can hold my own hand" in a similar tune to Mars' hit.
According to Billboard, some fans have speculated that Hemsworth dedicated Mars' song to Cyrus following their first engagement in 2013 — though those theories so far are unconfirmed.
One TikTok video, posted by user thruthelatenightt had accumulated over 1.7 million likes and thousands of comments as of Sunday — including commentary from singer Charlie Puth, who wrote "That's actually genius lol."
The song's opening verse could refer to the Woolsey Fire of 2018.
Cyrus and Hemsworth's Malibu home was razed by a 2018 fire. Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
"We were good, we were gold/ Kind of dream that can't be sold/ We were right till we weren't/ Built a home and watched it burn," Cyrus sings in the opening verse.
According to Us Weekly, the fire metaphor could be referring to the home Cyrus shared with Hemsworth, which burned down during the 2018 Woolsey Fire.
Cyrus has said that the loss of the couple's Malibu home is partially what led her and Hemsworth to get married.
Some fans have drawn comparisons between a clip from the song's music video and a past red-carpet moment.
Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth at the 2019 Vanity Fair Oscars party. Some fans think Cyrus' new music video is a callback to an interview at the event. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
In 2019, while attending the Vanity Fair Oscars party, an Access Hollywood reporter asked Cyrus and Hemsworth what a dance number would look like between the couple.
When Cyrus began dancing on Hemsworth, her then-husband, he shuts it down, saying "We're not doing this. Not on the carpet."
One Twitter user put that video side-by-side with a promotional clip Cyrus posted on the social platform, where she appears to do a similar dance move — while the lyrics "I can love me better" play in the background.