Flavor Flav Says Miley Cyrus Once Playfully Slapped Him for Calling Her Gwen Stefani

Flavor Flav and Miley Cyrus shared a heartwarming reunion at the 2024 Grammy Awards, but that wasn’t always the case.

Flav joined the Just B With Bethenny Frankel podcast on Thursday (Feb. 22), where he recalled a time he mixed up Miley with Gwen Stefani and when he went over to apologize, she playfully slapped him to make sure it wouldn’t happen again.

“It came from a time that they looked alike,” the Public Enemy rapper said around the 28:30 mark. “There was a time a few years back when they both had the same exact haircut. That’s the thing that got me. When I ran across my Miley first time ever in my life I was like, ‘Oh my God, Gwen Stefani, Gwen Stefani!’ Miley didn’t say anything she just went along with it.”

It wasn’t until one of Flav’s friends alerted him of the mix-up that he realized had just met Miley Cyrus and not the “Hollaback Girl” artist.

“I turned around and I ran back to her,” he explained. “‘Oh my God, I’m so sorry. Yo, Miley Cyrus, I know who you are now. Your dad Billy Ray Cyrus. I was like, ‘I’m so stupid.’ Smacked me in the face. She smacked me in the face. Miley Cyrus slapped Flavor Flav in the face and we laughed it off.”

Billboard has reached out to Miley Cyrus’ reps for comment.

Flav detailed how things went much better when they linked up at the 2024 Grammy Awards backstage. “That girl lit up like a Christmas tree,” Flav claimed. “Miley love herself some Flav.”

Footage of the unlikely interaction went viral on social media, as the “Flowers” singer was in shock Flavor Flav actually got her name right this time around.

“You know it’s me?! I made it,” Cyrus said to Flav. “You don’t think I’m Gwen Stefani anymore? You used to call me Gwen every time I saw you!”

“I know,” he admitted as the two went on to snap a few photos together. Miley added: “You know what time it is!”

Listen to Flavor Flav talk about Miley Cyrus on the Just B podcast below.