Hannah Montana will live in Miley Cyrus’ heart forever. On Aug. 11, the Disney Channel alum was honored with the Disney Legend award at the D23 Expo, and made history in the process. At 31 years old, Cyrus is now the youngest person ever to receive the honor, being recognized for her contributions to Disney and the legacy she has built as a performer.

Before Cyrus accepted her award, singer Lainey Wilson performed a country rendition of Hannah Montana’s theme song, “The Best of Both Worlds,” alongside a video montage that featured cameos from John Travolta, Chappell Roan, and Bret Michaels.

Cyrus was visibly emotional as she began her speech, warning the crowd that she would cry before revealing a “Disney Legend secret,” as she called it. “Legends get scared, too,” she stated. “I’m scared right now, but the difference is we do it anyway, and all of you can do that every single day. It’s legendary to be afraid and do it anyway. There is no such thing as failure when you try.”

Miley’s Hannah Montana Tribute

Miley Cyrus as Hannah Montana.Byron Cohen/Disney General Entertainment Content/Getty Images
The singer-actor reflected on her auditions for Hannah Montana, the Disney Channel show that started her journey to being a Legend. “In 2005, Disney was on a mission to rebuild the company. That’s why they hired Bob Iger, and me,” she said, nodding to the Walt Disney Company CEO.

While Cyrus initially didn’t get the role, being told that she was “too small and too young,” she was called in a year later to film a new pilot after their first casting didn’t work. “I had gotten a taste of what my life could be, and from that moment on, I did not want anything else,” she recalled.

She poked fun at her post-Disney endeavors, jokingly apologizing for her Bangerz era when she was not as family-friendly as Disney may have liked. “I definitely wasn’t created in a lab, but if I was, there must’ve been a bug in the system which caused me to malfunction somewhere between the years of 2013-16,” she said. “Sorry Mickey!”

Cyrus concluded her speech by paying tribute to her OG pop-star alter ego, recalling the first time she performed as Hannah Montana to a crowd who got free tickets at a mall and had no clue who she was. “In reality, I was a little girl in a blonde wig at the mall with a big dream, but in my heart, I was Hannah Montana. And I was so proud to be,” she said, visibly tearing up.

“I stand here still proud to have been Hannah Montana,” she declared. “This award is dedicated to Hannah and all of her amazing, loyal fans, and to everyone who has made my dream a reality. To quote the legend herself, ‘This is the life.’”

Fans will be able to watch Cyrus’ speech when the Disney Legends ceremony starts streaming on Disney+ on Aug. 12 at 5 p.m. ET.