Beyoncé and Miley Cyrus’s Duet on Cowboy Carter Interpolates Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide”
Miley Cyrus is featured on Beyoncé’s latest album, Cowboy Carter, in a gorgeous duet titled “II Most Wanted.” The two expertly blend their voices on the subdued track that mainly features a plucking guitar as they sing about young love, with Cyrus’s signature twang on full display. Upon the album’s release, many listeners noted that “II Most Wanted” shares a similar chord progression with Fleetwood Mac’s 1975 track “Landslide.”
The songs also share some thematic elements: both are about a newfound love and the effects that could have on a person’s life. Bey and Cyrus croon about a fast-paced love and being a “shotgun rider ’til the day I die/Smoke out the window, flyin’ down the 405.”
In a heartfelt message to Beyoncé posted on X, Cyrus wrote, “I’ve loved Beyonce since long before I had the opportunity to meet & work with her,” she wrote in the caption. “My admiration runs so much deeper now that I’ve created along side of her. Thank you Beyonce. You’re everything & more. Love you. To everyone who spent time making this song so special thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
The song became an immediate stand-out and shot to the top of the iTunes charts in less than 12 hours of the album’s release. The song joins other Cowboy Carter songs like “Jolene,” “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “Blackbiird” in the top 10 spots on the iTunes chart.
Cyrus’s appearance on the album was a surprise. Before Beyoncé revealed the tracklist, speculation over who else might feature on it grew, especially after Dolly Parton, Cyrus’s godmother, teased that she had also contributed to the album. After Cyrus was revealed to be on Cowboy Carter, social media users began circulating a video of the Endless Summer Vacation singer talking about the first time she ever worked with Beyoncé at a Stand Up to Cancer benefit concert in 2008.
“What I remember most from doing this performance is I was standing in between two of the big legends and icons that I was looking up to at the time, and they treated me like a little sister the entire time,” Cyrus says in the video. “They were being really sweet.”