Miley Cyrus’ fiancé, Maxx Morando, went to extreme lengths to keep his proposal plans a secret from the pop star.
“We were in Kyoto, Japan. For some reason, you’ll find this as crazy as I did, she’d never been to Japan before. Neither had I, and we’d both wanted to go for a really long time,” Morando, 27, told Wonderland magazine in a profile published Tuesday, July 28. “There were talks before we went about me popping the question, but I was trying to keep it secret. She was not trying to keep it a secret, if you know what I mean.”
He continued, “I had to be really sneaky about it. We went to Tokyo first for a couple days and then on to Kyoto. I think she had a sense that it was coming, so I was waiting until the very last moment of the very last day to throw her off the scent as much as I could.”
During their visit to Kyoto, Morando invited Cyrus, 33, on a walk along the exterior of their hotel.
“There was this little outer garden that you had to cross a plank to get over. There was a sign that said you couldn’t cross. I was like, ‘That’s crazy, let’s go over there,’” he quipped. “She’s like, ‘No, it’s blocked.’ Eventually, I persuaded her. We walked in, and it was a little dead end, this beautiful Japanese forest-y situation. She was taking videos and was turned away. That’s when I got on one knee and tapped her on the shoulder.”
As he dropped to one knee, Morando began “sweating” with nervous anticipation.
“I could feel my heart pounding. You grow up as a kid watching the movies where the guy gets on one knee and does the whole thing, and you know that’s what you’re supposed to do,” he recalled to the magazine. “But then you realize, ‘OK, I literally have to get on one knee.’ I didn’t want to f*** up and fumble or drop the [ring].”
Luckily for the drummer, Cyrus said “yes” and accepted his proposal.
A traditional wedding might not be in the cards for Miley Cyrus and Maxx Morando. “Miley is really happy right now and in such a good, calm place,” a source tells Us Weekly exclusively. “She’s not super into the idea of doing another wedding.” Both Cyrus, 33, and Morando, 27, will “definitely celebrate in their […]
Us confirmed the couple’s engagement in December 2025. That same month, Cyrus shed light on the milestone during an appearance on Good Morning America.
“I actually had never gone to Japan, which, I did that purposefully. I wanted one place in the world that could be my special place that I saved for me,” she said at the time. “I am not easy to surprise because I love to control every situation, and I had completely surrendered. And I’m telling you, I was so, so surprised.”
The Grammy winner further gushed that Morando “did good” picking out her Jacquie Achie engagement ring, a 14-carat cushion-cut diamond set on a gold band.
Cyrus, who was previously married to her Last Song costar Liam Hemsworth, and Morando have since started planning their nontraditional nuptials.
“They have talked about eloping and doing something very private with just the two of them,” a source exclusively told Us late last year. “She is embracing this era being engaged and is not in a rush to plan anything.”
