What Billy Idol Learned (and Loved) About Miley Cyrus Working on Her Song ‘Night Crawling’

“She has a lot of fun, but she takes it seriously,” Idol says about how Cyrus navigates her career

Billy Idol works as hard as he plays — just like Miley Cyrus!

In a recent exclusive interview with PEOPLE, the rock icon, 68, reflects on his experience working with the “Flowers” singer on the duet “Night Crawling” from her 2020 album Plastic Hearts.

Music producer Andrew Watt — who is a friend of Idol’s — worked on the project, which is full of glam rock and synth pop.

Billy Idol and Miley Cyrus pose backstage at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas in September 2016. KEVIN MAZUR/WIREIMAGE

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The “Dancing with Myself” singer says Cyrus, now 31, asked Watt if she could do a song in Idol’s style when the producer asked her if she wanted to collaborate with the icon, which is how the song came about.

“It was more of a Billy Idol track actually, but that’s what she wanted to do,” Idol says of their track. “So it was like a bit of a techno rock, Billy Idol meets Miley.”

The “Sweet Sixteen” singer says that he feels a kinship with Cyrus for a specific reason.

Billy Idol and Miley Cyrus performing in Las Vegas in September 2016. KEVIN WINTER/GETTY IMAGES

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“She really works hard at what she does. I’ve watched her rehearsing,” says Idol, who has performed live with the singer multiple times. “She has a lot of fun, but she takes it seriously, rather like what I do…. We’re having a lot of fun, but we’re being serious at the same time. So there’s a little bit of both going on.”

Billy Idol performs in Oslo, Norway in June 2023.  PER OLE HAGEN/REDFERNS/GETTY IMAGES

Idol says the “Wrecking Ball” singer’s work ethic made him eager to work with her because he knows how much it takes to succeed as a solo artist.

“She’s really committed to what she does. That excited me a lot that I saw how committed she

was. It takes a lot of commitment because it is all about you, it’s you doing it,” he tells PEOPLE.

Billy Idol and Miley Cyrus perform before the Kansas City Chiefs play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV in January 2019.

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Their song “Night Crawling” could be referring to club crawling and Idol says it reminds him of his youth.

“It’s fun thinking about those days, and Miley was still living inside,” Idol admits.

For more from Billy Idol, pick up the latest issues of PEOPLE, available on newsstands everywhere now.