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| Birth Name(s) : Lionel Richie |
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Full Lionel Richie Biography
Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. (born June 20, 1949), professionally known as Lionel Richie, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and occasional actor who has sold over fifty million records.
Born in Tuskegee, Alabama, Richie grew up on the campus of Tuskegee Institute. His grandfather's house was across the street from the home of the president of the Institute. His family moved to Illinois where he graduated from Joliet Township High School, East Campus, in Joliet. A star tennis player in Joliet, he accepted a tennis scholarship back at Tuskegee Institute and later graduated with a major in economics.
Back as a student in Tuskegee, he formed a succession of R&B groups in the mid-'60s. In 1968 he became the lead singer and saxophonist with the Commodores. They signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records in 1968 for one record before moving on to Motown Records, being schooled as support act to the Jackson Five. The Commodores became established as one of America's most popular soul groups of the '70s. Their first several albums had a danceable, funky sound (with such tracks as "Machine Gun" and "Brick House"). Over time, however, Richie wrote and sang more of their biggest hits, which were more romantic, easy-listening ballads such as "Three Times A Lady" and "Still".
His pleasing vocal tones established him as the most prominent member of the group, and by the late '70s he had begun to accept songwriting commissions from other artists. He composed "Lady" for his friend Kenny Rogers which hit #1 in 1980, and he produced Rogers' Share Your Love album the following year. Also in 1981, Richie sang a duet with Diana Ross in the theme song for the film Endless Love. Issued as a single, the song topped the UK and U.S. pop music charts, and it became one of Motown's biggest hits. Its success encouraged Richie to branch out into a full-fledged solo career in 1982. His debut album, Lionel Richie, produced another chart-topping single, " Truly", which continued the style of his ballads with the Commodores.
In 1983, he released Can't Slow Down, which shot him into the first rank of international superstars. The album also won two Grammy Awards including Album Of The Year. It spawned the #1 hit "All Night Long", a Caribbean-flavored dance number that was promoted by a dazzling music video produced by former Monkee, Michael Nesmith.
Several more Top 10 hits followed, the most successful of which was the ballad "Hello" (1984), a sentimental love song that showed how far Richie had moved from his R&B roots. Now described by one critic as 'the black Barry Manilow', Richie wrote and performed a suitably soothing theme song, "Say You, Say Me", for the film White Nights, winning an Oscar for his efforts. He also collaborated with Michael Jackson on the charity single "We Are the World" by USA for Africa.
In 1983, Lionel and wife Brenda informally adopted the 2-year-old daughter of people associated with Lionel's band. They raised Nicole Richie as their daughter. Around 1990 Lionel and Brenda went through the legal formalities of adopting Nicole.
Lionel and Diana Alexander had a son, Myles Brockman, May 27, 1994. Lionel married Alexander in December 21, 1995. Their daughter Sofia was born 26 August 1998. Lionel and Alexander divorced January 2004.
In 1986, Richie released Dancing on the Ceiling, another widely popular album that produced a run of US and UK hits. The title selection, which revived the lively dance sound of "All Night Long(All Night)," was accompanied by another striking video, a feature that played an increasingly important role in Richie's solo career. The critical consensus was that this album represented nothing more than a consolidation of his previous work, though Richie's collaboration with the country group Alabama on "Deep River Woman" did break new ground.
In 2002, Richie's song "Running With the Night" was featured on the Rockstar North video game "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City" though the song was removed from later versions of the game. In 2004, he appeared on Canadian Idol as his songs were featured during a Canadian Idol week.
In recent years, Richie has become a phenomenon in various Arab states, and has performed in Morocco, Dubai, Qatar and even Libya which has until recently shut out Western influences.
Grown Iraqi men get misty-eyed by the mere mention of his name. "I love Lionel Richie," they say. Iraqis who do not understand a word of English can sing an entire Lionel Richie song.
It was, 'Tell me what kind of guy is Dallas Austin.' I said, 'Listen, this is a great guy. He's done a great job for the community. A gangster, a hoodlum, a thug, he's not.'
Richie helped to raise over $3.1 million for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. He was the featured performer at the Foundation's Soirée Bouquet, the annual spring gala.
Richie told the crowd that his grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer in her 80s, but survived until she was 104 years old. He stated that she was his enduring symbol of hope and his reason for becoming a breast cancer activist. |
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