Miley Cyrus overshadows 'Hannah' with new album

The 15-year-old face of the billion-dollar Disney franchise is no longer a star for just the tween set: She's intriguing people who turn the pages of Seventeen magazine, as well as Us Weekly and Vanity Fair (more on THAT later). While "Hannah" is still very much a part of Miley, it does not solely define the singer/actress.

Nowhere is that clearer than with the release of Miley's latest album, "Breakout," which comes out Tuesday. While Miley has already sold millions of albums, it's always been with the "Hannah Montana" moniker attached (2006's "Hannah Montana" and 2007's "Hannah Montana: Meet Miley Cyrus").

But there's no blonde wig to be found on the cover of this CD. Instead, there's a more mature sound that's already finding an older audience. The CD's first single, the rocker "7 Things," is now No. 7 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart) and marks her biggest success in translating her music beyond the Radio Disney audience.

"To be played on these radio stations is awesome, to be able to rock out to it in your car without planning it, without it being just a kids channel," says Miley, who with her deep voice and self-assured manner seems a decade older that 15.

"(I'm) making it a little more fun and edgy, and I think being able to step out of the 'Hannah Montana' thing--not in a way where I'm forgetting her completely, but as my fans grow up, me growing up too and kind of having my own person."

The "Hannah Montana thing" is familiar to millions of kids and adults alike. A movie is due out next year, the third season of the kitschy TV show starts filming in weeks, and the DVD of the blockbuster "Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds" tour, which wrapped up earlier this year, is a lock to top the charts when it debuts later this summer.

But navigating her own celebrity path outside the confines of famous character has proven to be difficult. With former teen phenoms like Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears providing epic examples of bad behavior, and the nude photo scandal involving Disney "High School Musical" star Vanessa Hudgens, tabloids have been eager to document a Miley implosion.

The first signs of potential concern came in the form of personal pictures that made their way onto the Internet, showing Miley dressed provocatively (though not obscenely) and setting the blogosphere abuzz.

A more serious firestorm erupted in April when Vanity Fair published a photo of Miley wrapped in a sheet, showing her bare back and shoulders. The photo caused such outrage that no less than The New York Times chronicled the controversy, and Miley and her father, country star Billy Ray Cyrus, said they regretted the result of the photo shoot. They also said she was never topless, as the photo by the esteemed Annie Leibovitz suggested.