Billy Ray Cyrus Defends ‘Trainwreck’ Performance at Trump Inaugural Ball

It seems like Carrie Underwood wasn’t the only performer to experience technical difficulties at President Donald Trump’s inaugural celebrations Monday, with country star Billy Ray Cyrus crediting onstage malfunctions for his fiasco of a performance.

The 63-year-old singer sparked immediate concern after his“trainwreck” set, as one X user put it, during the Liberty Ball Monday night which saw him incoherently mumbling along to his songs, refusing to leave the stage despite his mic and stage light being cut off, and asking if anybody was “awake” after his guitar and microphone appeared to malfunction right before singing his hit song “Achy Breaky Heart.”

“I wouldn’t have missed the honor of playing this event whether my microphone, guitar and monitors worked or not. I was there because President Donald J. Trump invited me,” Cyrus told People magazine in a statement Tuesday reflecting on his performance.

“I had a ball at the Liberty Ball last night and I’ve learned through all these years when the producer says, ‘You’re on,’ you go entertain the folks even if the equipment goes to hell. I was there for the people and we had a blast. That’s called rock n roll!!!,” he continued.

Like Underwood’s impromptu a capella rendition of “America the Beautiful” during Trump’s swear-in ceremony, Cyrus’ technical malfunction also inspired him to go down the Pitch Perfect route as he spoke the lyrics to “Achy Breaky Heart” while snapping his fingers.

“Check? Is anybody awake?,” Cyrus asked at one point, looking around for assistance with his equipment. “Y’all want me to sing more or you want me to just get the hell off the stage?”

“In life, when you have technical difficulties, you just gotta keep going, or as President Trump would say, ‘You gotta fight,’” he added.