Billy Ray Cyrus Death Scare: Doctors Told Hospitalized Singer to Get His 'Affairs in Order' After Suffering Near-Fatal Sepsis Diagnosis

Billy Ray Cyrus is lucky to be alive after suffering a near-fatal sepsis diagnosis in 2024.

The 64-year-old singer's sepsis diagnosis left him with vocal paralysis. While in the hospital, Cyrus recalled doctors telling him to get "affairs in order" as his body was "swollen" and experiencing a life-threatening response to an infection.

"I don't know exactly how it evolved. It was my worst nightmare. Two years before that, my mom had died in that hospital, in the very floor that I was on," he expressed in a new interview with People.

Somehow, Cyrus was able to make a full recovery, which amazed doctors. "I had a prayer answered," he admitted. "That's a miracle."

Now, Cyrus has made his health more of a priority, as he shared: "I am the most sober person in the world."

He added, "I did drink a lot until 1992, and I just quit. After 10 years of failure and being told no, I finally got a record deal, and that inner voice said, ‘This is going to happen, but you have to stop drinking.' So I just stopped."

After ditching drinks, everything fell into place.

Long before he was best known as the father of Miley Cyrus, the mullet-wearing singer became a household name with the 1992 release of line-dance anthem “Achy Breaky Heart” off his album Some Gave All, which became the best-selling album of the year.

In 1993, he wed Tish Cyrus, 59, who is the mother of Miley, 33, Braison, 32, and Noah, 26. He adopted her children, Brandi, 39, and Trace, 37. He also raised son Christopher, 34, from a previous relationship.

The couple divorced in 2022.

"Sometimes change is scary, and I'll keep doing the wrong thing for a long time because I'm scared of change," he said of the demise of his marriage. "But when I finally do get the courage up to commit in my mind and say, ‘I'm going to do this,' then that's the way it is. No looking back. I think that's maybe sometimes good for everyone — to just let go."

After their split, he wed Australian singer Firerose, who was born Johanna Rose Hodge, in 2023, but they split in 2024 amidst fraud and abuse allegations.

"When you're completely on the bottom, that is the only way to go — up," Billy Ray said.

He admitted he has "been to h--- and back a couple of times."

The family collaborated on his forthcoming album, The Hill, out Tuesday, June 16.

It is his first album in 14 years.

Braison produced and co-wrote The Hill while Noah duetted on the song “On Our Way Along.”

Billy Ray joined Miley to film Disney+'s Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special in February

"All these years later it's going back to our roots as a family," Billy Ray said. "And to be in this moment with them, it's just a great celebration of our family."

Now Billy Ray has been dating actress Elizabeth Hurley, 61, after going public with their romance in 2025.

He has a new lease on life.

"Life is a series of adjustments, and I think my family always knew that,” Billy Ray said. “We've all been through a lot, and we've seen a lot. Whatever happened is in the rearview mirror. The past is over and done. The future is what we have, and we got to look forward."