Lionel Richie

Early life

Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. was born on June 20, 1949, in Tuskegee, Alabama, to Lionel Brockman Richie, a U.S. Army systems analyst, and Alberta R. Foster, a teacher and school principal. His grandmother Adelaide Mary Brown was a classical pianist. He grew up on the campus of Tuskegee Institute, where his family home was a gift from Booker T. Washington. Richie graduated from Joliet Township High School in Illinois, where he was a star tennis player, and accepted a tennis scholarship to attend Tuskegee Institute. There he played in the marching band and earned a Bachelor of Science in economics with a minor in accounting. He considered studying divinity to become an Episcopal priest but decided against it. He is a member of Kappa Kappa Psi and Alpha Phi Alpha fraternities.

Career

Richie formed R&B groups as a student at Tuskegee and in 1968 became a singer and saxophonist with the Commodores. They signed with Atlantic Records for one record before moving to Motown as a support act for the Jackson 5. The Commodores became a popular soul group, first known for danceable funk tracks like "Machine Gun" and "Brick House", then for Richie's romantic ballads such as "Easy", "Three Times a Lady", "Still", and "Sail On". In 1974, Richie co-wrote "Happy People", which became a number-one R&B hit for the Temptations.

He wrote and produced Kenny Rogers' number-one single "Lady" in 1980 and produced Rogers' album Share Your Love. In 1981, his duet with Diana Ross, "Endless Love", topped charts in multiple countries. His 1982 debut solo album Lionel Richie sold over four million copies and included the number-one single "Truly". The 1983 album Can't Slow Down reached number one on the Billboard 200, sold over twenty million copies worldwide, and won Album of the Year at the Grammys; its singles included "All Night Long (All Night)" and "Hello".

Richie co-wrote the 1985 charity single "We Are the World" with Michael Jackson. His 1986 album Dancing on the Ceiling produced the number-one single "Say You, Say Me", which won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. After a recording break from 1986 to 1996, he released seven more studio albums and became a judge on American Idol from its sixteenth season in 2018.

Personal life

Richie married his college sweetheart Brenda Harvey on October 18, 1975. In 1983, the couple informally adopted Nicole Camille Escovedo, the two-year-old daughter of a band member, and later legally adopted her when she was nine. In June 1988, Harvey was arrested after she found Richie at Diane Alexander's apartment. Richie married Diane Alexander on December 21, 1995; they had a son, Miles, and a daughter, Sofia, before divorcing in 2004.

Richie became a grandfather in 2008 when Nicole Richie had a daughter with Joel Madden, and a second grandchild was born in 2009. He is a Freemason. He helped raise over $3.1 million for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, citing his grandmother's survival of breast cancer. Richie had throat problems requiring four surgeries in four years; a holistic doctor attributed the issue to acid reflux from foods eaten before bed.

A joint concert with Earth, Wind & Fire on June 24, 2026, was cut short when Richie felt dizzy; subsequent shows were postponed. On August 29, 2026, he checked into an intensive care unit after a concert in St. Louis.

Awards and honors

Richie has won four Grammy Awards: Song of the Year in 1985 for "We Are the World", Album of the Year in 1984 for Can't Slow Down, Producer of the Year (Non-Classical) in 1984, and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Truly" in 1982. He was the first recipient of an RIAA diamond album award. He won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song for "Say You, Say Me" and was nominated for a Golden Globe for "Endless Love".