📝 In This Article:
- How Noah Cyrus learned from watching Miley’s fame—without being taught
- Why Rihanna refused the “role model” label—and inspired millions anyway
- The emotional cost of being expected to lead by example in public
- What it means to be authentic in an image-driven industry
- How these stories redefine what a true role model can be today
- Introduction: When Growing Up in the Spotlight Teaches You More Than Fame
- Noah Cyrus: Learning in the Shadows of Fame
- Reflections from Noah’s Journey
- Rihanna: Refusing to Be a Role Model—And Becoming One Anyway
- Rihanna’s Lessons: A Different Kind of Role Model
- Role Models Aren’t Perfect—They’re Brave
- Final Reflections: What Kind of Role Model Will You Choose?
Introduction: When Growing Up in the Spotlight Teaches You More Than Fame
In the world of modern music, influence is not only about sound. It’s about presence, pressure, growth, and how someone’s journey can quietly—or loudly—shape someone else’s life. Artists often talk about who they were inspired by, but sometimes, the lessons are not taught directly. They are absorbed through watching, feeling, and experiencing from the sidelines. These role models might be siblings, mentors, or even themselves, projected through time.
Two singers—Noah Cyrus and Rihanna—have spoken candidly about what it means to have, or be, a role model. Their stories are not the polished narratives we might expect. Instead, they reveal the reality of growing up with influence all around you, sometimes unwanted, sometimes deeply cherished. Through their reflections, we begin to see that role models are not perfect—they are real.
Noah Cyrus: Learning in the Shadows of Fame
A Sister’s Career as a Life Map
Noah Cyrus grew up in a family already known around the world. Her older sister, Miley Cyrus, had become a global icon thanks to the Disney series Hannah Montana. While fans saw the lights, cameras, and wild outfits, Noah, as the younger sister, saw the private side—the exhaustion, the pressure, the constant evolution.
She was too young to fully understand it all at the time, but as she got older and began carving her own career in music, she realized that the experience of watching Miley gave her a map. It wasn’t about copying her sister. It was about understanding what came with that level of visibility, and how to survive it.
When Noah speaks about Miley today, she often emphasizes not just admiration, but analysis. She paid attention to how her sister responded to fame’s highs and lows. In her words, she would think, “If that happens to me, how do I handle it?” That kind of quiet reflection helped her develop resilience long before she needed it.
From Imitation to Independence
Noah’s early music career was difficult. She often felt like she was being compared to someone she could never become. Her voice was different. Her emotional energy was different. Her path was not about pop spectacle—it was raw, emotional, and rooted in a different kind of vulnerability.
For a while, she tried to find herself by experimenting with pop sounds. But something always felt disconnected. It wasn’t until she embraced her own musical roots—folk, Americana, stripped-down emotional storytelling—that she truly began to shine.
Her projects like The End of Everything and The Hardest Part were not just albums—they were emotional statements. They showed that being a role model doesn’t mean being loud or famous. Sometimes, it means being honest with yourself, even if that journey is slower and quieter.
A Family Woven Into the Music
Noah’s connection to family runs deep, and that’s visible in her latest album, where she worked with multiple members of the Cyrus family. One song includes a hymn written by her great-grandfather. Another was co-written with her brother. Even her father, Billy Ray Cyrus, contributed a track.
In a way, this album became a bridge across generations. It wasn’t just about making music—it was about making peace, acknowledging history, and turning shared memories into melodies. Even when the family was facing personal conflict, Noah chose to transform pain into harmony.
One line in particular—“The words that were spoken mean nothing to me”—reflects how family dynamics can be both cutting and comforting. It’s a reminder that music often becomes the safest place to process what we can’t always say aloud.
Protecting Peace in the Public Eye
Being part of a famous family means living with attention that you didn’t always ask for. Noah has talked openly about how difficult it was to stay emotionally grounded while media headlines focused on her relatives’ divorces or personal lives. But she also learned how to create distance—to protect her own peace.
Instead of reacting to every rumor, Noah decided to stay focused on the music. She learned that sometimes, survival in the spotlight requires knowing when to look away. Fame is loud, but wisdom is often quiet.
Reflections from Noah’s Journey
Noah’s story shows us a version of a role model that doesn’t fit the usual mold. She wasn’t taught—she learned by watching. She didn’t follow footsteps—she created her own path beside them.
Here are four key lessons we can draw:
- Observation is powerful.
Being close to someone doesn’t mean copying them. It can mean learning quietly—taking in not just what they say, but how they move through the world. - Authenticity takes time.
Noah didn’t find her voice overnight. She had to lose it first. She had to try things that didn’t work, feel the discomfort, and return to something more real. - Healing is an art form.
By collaborating with family and transforming shared memories into songs, Noah reminded us that music isn’t just sound—it’s therapy. It’s reconciliation. It’s history. - Boundaries matter.
Not every family story needs to be told in public. Not every emotion needs to be explained. By protecting what matters most, Noah has shown how private dignity can live inside public success.
Rihanna: Refusing to Be a Role Model—And Becoming One Anyway
The Label She Never Asked For
When Rihanna first entered the spotlight, she was barely out of her teens. Almost immediately, she was labeled a “role model”—a term that came with weight, expectations, and, most of all, a kind of spotlight she didn’t always welcome.
But Rihanna wasn’t trying to be perfect. She wasn’t trying to inspire the next generation through carefully curated decisions. She was living, growing, experimenting—and making mistakes in public.
Over the years, she’s expressed frustration with the idea that her fame required her to behave a certain way. Being a celebrity didn’t mean she owed anyone moral leadership. And being a woman in the public eye didn’t mean she had to be soft, kind, or safe. Sometimes, just existing with agency was already an act of resistance.
From Artist to Icon on Her Own Terms
Despite rejecting the “role model” label, Rihanna’s career shows exactly why she became one anyway.
She pushed boundaries with music videos, lyrics, and performances. She blurred the lines between fashion and music, often appearing on magazine covers that celebrated not just her style, but her boldness. She took risks, embraced controversies, and refused to apologize for being herself.
Her music wasn’t always polished or predictable. Songs like Bitch Better Have My Money or Needed Me were declarations of power and self-protection, not crowd-pleasers. Her artistic choices didn’t ask for permission—and that, in itself, became a kind of inspiration.
Fashion, Business, and the New Role Model Blueprint
Beyond music, Rihanna built an empire. Her makeup line, Fenty Beauty, changed the beauty industry by prioritizing inclusivity. She released foundation shades that had never existed in mainstream brands. She redefined what it meant to be “the standard” of beauty—and expanded the definition to include everyone.
Her lingerie line, Savage X Fenty, was just as bold. Models of all sizes, genders, and backgrounds walked her runway. The message was clear: power doesn’t come from fitting into a mold—it comes from breaking it.
Through these ventures, Rihanna showed that success doesn’t have to look like tradition. It can look like courage, creativity, and unapologetic individuality.
Rihanna’s Lessons: A Different Kind of Role Model
Rihanna may have refused the title, but she redefined it. Here are four major takeaways from her story:
- You don’t have to accept the pedestal.
Being called a role model doesn’t mean you owe perfection. Rihanna taught us that people can be inspiring simply by being real, flaws and all. - Leadership can look like resistance.
Every time Rihanna challenged fashion norms or cultural expectations, she wasn’t just being provocative—she was making space for others. - Power comes from ownership.
Through her businesses and brands, Rihanna took control of how she was seen. She didn’t wait for approval—she created her own lanes. - Authenticity invites connection.
Rihanna’s fans don’t follow her because she’s flawless. They follow her because she’s human, honest, and fearless.
Role Models Aren’t Perfect—They’re Brave
When we look at stories like Noah’s and Rihanna’s, we start to see a new kind of role model emerging—one that isn’t polished, scripted, or shaped by public approval. These are role models who inspire by embracing imperfection.
For Noah, it was the act of watching, processing, and choosing her own voice. For Rihanna, it was the refusal to be boxed in, and the boldness to live loudly, even when it invited criticism.
They remind us that anyone—regardless of fame—can choose to lead by example. Not by trying to be something for everyone, but by daring to be fully themselves.
Final Reflections: What Kind of Role Model Will You Choose?
In the end, the most important question is not who your role model is—but how you relate to them.
Do they help you see a future you didn’t think was possible?
Do they challenge you to be more honest, more creative, more yourself?
Do they remind you that growth is messy—and that’s okay?
Role models don’t have to be celebrities. They can be friends, family members, or even your younger self—the one who dreamed before life got complicated.
What matters most is that they guide you not toward imitation, but toward becoming who you really are.
