Editing Lionel Richie (section)

==Career==
===Commodores===
{{Main|Commodores}}
As a student in Tuskegee, Richie formed a succession of [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]] groups in the mid-1960s. In 1968, he became a 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]] initially as a support act to [[The Jackson 5]]. The Commodores then became established as a popular soul group. Their first several albums had a danceable, funky sound, as in such tracks as "[[Machine Gun (Commodores album)|Machine Gun]]" and "[[Brick House (song)|Brick House]]". Over time, Richie wrote and sang more romantic, easy-listening ballads such as "[[Easy (Commodores song)|Easy]]", "[[Three Times a Lady]]", "[[Still (Commodores song)|Still]]", and the breakup ballad "[[Sail On (song)|Sail On]]".

In 1974, Richie achieved his first commercial success as a songwriter with "[[Happy People (The Temptations song)|Happy People]]", which he co-wrote with Jeffrey Bowen and Donald Baldwin. Originally intended as a Commodores track, it was recorded by [[The Temptations]], who had their No. 1 R&B with the song. By the late 1970s, Richie had begun to accept songwriting commissions from other artists. He wrote "[[Lady (Kenny Rogers song)|Lady]]" for [[Kenny Rogers]], which hit No. 1 in 1980, and produced Rogers' album ''[[Share Your Love]]'' the following year. Richie and Rogers maintained a strong friendship in later years. Latin jazz composer and [[Salsa music|salsa]] romantica pioneer [[La Palabra (musician)|La Palabra]] enjoyed international success with his cover of "Lady", which was played at Latin dance clubs. Also in 1981, Richie sang the [[Endless Love (song)|title theme song]] for the film ''[[Endless Love (1981 film)|Endless Love]]'', a duet with [[Diana Ross]]. Issued as a single, the song topped the Canada, Brazil, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and US pop music charts, and became one of Motown's biggest hits.

===Solo career===
[[File:Lionel Richie 1984.jpg|thumb|upright|Richie in 1984]]
Richie's 1982 debut solo album, ''[[Lionel Richie (album)|Lionel Richie]]'', contained three hit singles: the U.S. number-one song "[[Truly (Lionel Richie song)|Truly]]", which continued the style of his ballads with the Commodores and launched his career as one of the most successful balladeers of the 1980s, and the top five hits "[[You Are (Lionel Richie song)|You Are]]" and "[[My Love (Lionel Richie song)|My Love]]". The album hit No. 3 on the music charts and sold over 4 million copies.

His 1983 follow-up album, ''[[Can't Slow Down (Lionel Richie album)|Can't Slow Down]]'', sold over twice as many copies and won two [[Grammy Awards]], including [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]], propelling him into the first rank of international superstars. The album contained the number-one hit "[[All Night Long (All Night)|All Night Long]]", a Caribbean-flavored dance number that was promoted by a colorful music video produced by former [[The Monkees|Monkee]] [[Michael Nesmith]]. In 1984, he performed "All Night Long" at the ending ceremony of the [[1984 Summer Olympics|XXIII Olympic Games]] in Los Angeles.

Several more Top 10 hits followed, the most successful of which was the ballad "[[Hello (Lionel Richie song)|Hello]]" (1984), a sentimental love song that showed how far he had moved from his R&B roots. Richie had three more top ten hits in 1984, "[[Stuck on You (Lionel Richie song)|Stuck on You]]" (No. 3), "[[Running with the Night]]" (No. 7) and "[[Penny Lover]]" (No. 8), as well as writing and producing "Missing You" for former labelmate and duet partner Diana Ross (No. 10 Pop, No. 1 R&B). In 1985, he wrote and performed "[[Say You, Say Me]]" for the film ''[[White Nights (1985 film)|White Nights]]''. The song won an [[Academy Award]] and reached No. 1 on the U.S. charts, staying there for four weeks, making it the number-two song of 1986 according to ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'}}s Year-End Hot 100 chart, behind the charity single "[[That's What Friends Are For]]" by [[Dionne Warwick|Dionne]] and Friends. He also collaborated with [[Michael Jackson]] on the charity single "[[We Are the World]]" by [[USA for Africa]], another number-one hit.

In 1986, Richie released ''[[Dancing on the Ceiling]]'', his last widely popular album, which produced a run of five US and UK hits, "[[Say You, Say Me]]" (U.S. No. 1), "[[Dancing on the Ceiling (Lionel Richie song)|Dancing on the Ceiling]]" (U.S. No. 2), "[[Love Will Conquer All]]" (U.S. No. 9), "[[Ballerina Girl]]" (U.S. No. 7), and "[[Se La]]" (U.S. No. 20). He made his return to recording and performing following the release of his first greatest-hits collection, ''[[Back to Front (Lionel Richie album)|Back to Front]]'', in 1992.

Since then, his ever-more-relaxed schedule has kept his recording and live work to a minimum. He broke the silence in 1996 with ''[[Louder Than Words (album)|Louder Than Words]]'', on which he resisted any change of style or the musical fashion-hopping of the past decade, sticking instead with his chosen path of well-crafted [[soul music]], which in the intervening years has become known as [[contemporary R&B]].

Richie's albums in the late 1990s such as ''[[Louder Than Words (album)|Louder Than Words]]'' and ''[[Time (Lionel Richie album)|Time]]'' failed to match the commercial success of his earlier work. Some of his recent albums, such as ''[[Renaissance (Lionel Richie album)|Renaissance]]'' and ''[[Just for You (Lionel Richie album)|Just for You]]'', have returned to his older style and achieved success in Europe but only modest notice in the United States.

===Later career===
[[Image:Lionel Richie and Guy Sebastian.jpg|thumb|Richie and [[Guy Sebastian]] performing "[[All Night Long (All Night)|All Night Long]]" during Richie's 2011 Australian and New Zealand tour]]
Richie was the headliner at a 2006 Fourth of July tribute concert with [[Fantasia Barrino]] at the [[Philadelphia Museum of Art]]. On May 7, 2006, Richie performed on the main stage (Acura Stage) at the [[New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival]], replacing [[Antoine "Fats" Domino]], who had fallen ill. Richie released his eighth studio album titled "[[Coming Home (Lionel Richie album)|Coming Home]]" on September 12, 2006. The first single of the album was "[[I Call It Love]]" and was premiered in July 2006, becoming his biggest hit in the U.S. in ten years. The album was a success for Richie in the United States, peaking at No. 6.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}

On May 2, 2008, Richie was the 21st recipient of the ''[[George Gershwin|George]] and [[Ira Gershwin]] [[Lifetime Achievement Award]]'' at [[University of California, Los Angeles|UCLA]]'s annual [[UCLA Spring Sing|Spring Sing]]. In accepting the award, Richie said: "Forget about surviving 30 some odd years in the music business, Lionel Richie survived 27 years of Nicole Richie."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/electronicplay.aspx?fid=24831&id=E0C5478 |title=Richie accepts Gershwin Award |publisher=Newsroom.UCLA.edu |date=May 2, 2008 |access-date=May 24, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927220036/http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/electronicplay.aspx?fid=24831&id=E0C5478 |archive-date=September 27, 2011 }}</ref>

In May 2009, Richie announced that he would like to get The Commodores back together soon.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/268607/lionel-richie-ready-to-go-with-albums-tour-commodores-reunion|title=Lionel Richie Ready to Go With Albums, Tour, Commodores Reunion|last=Graff|first=Gary|date=May 18, 2009|access-date=August 24, 2009|magazine=Billboard }}</ref> An album, ''[[Just Go (album)|Just Go]]'', was released in 2009. On July 7, 2009, Richie performed "Jesus is Love" at [[Michael Jackson memorial service|Michael Jackson's memorial service]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2009/07/07/looking-back-at-michael-jacksons-memorial/|title=Looking back at Michael Jackson's memorial|first=Peter|last=Larsen|date=July 7, 2009|website=Orange County Register|language=en-US|access-date=January 10, 2019|archive-date=January 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190104072618/https://www.ocregister.com/2009/07/07/looking-back-at-michael-jacksons-memorial/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Richie returned to Australia in 2011 where he and guest artist [[Guy Sebastian]] toured the country and New Zealand with concert dates throughout March and April.<ref>Paul Cashmere (December 5, 2010), {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20101205214706/http://www.undercover.fm/news/12966-lionel-richie-and-guy-sebastian-to-play-a-day-on-the-green "Lionel Richie and Guy Sebastian To Play A Day On The Green"]}}, ''Undercover''. Retrieved December 5, 2010. .</ref> Richie and Guy Sebastian recorded Richie's 1983 number-one single "[[All Night Long (All Night)|All Night Long]]" together to raise money for Australian floods and New Zealand earthquake relief.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.undercover.fm/news/13867-guy-sebastian-and-lionel-richie-work-all-night-long-for-flood-relief|title=undercover.fm|website=www.undercover.fm|access-date=February 26, 2011|archive-date=April 3, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403043346/http://www.undercover.fm/news/13867-guy-sebastian-and-lionel-richie-work-all-night-long-for-flood-relief|url-status=usurped}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=December 2020}}

On March 26, 2012, Richie released his tenth studio album, ''[[Tuskegee (album)|Tuskegee]]'', which featured 13 of his hit songs performed as duets with country stars.<ref>Coker, Melissa (March 26, 2012), [http://magazine.angrycountry.com/article.php?story=20120326075146699 "Lionel Richie's Countrified 'Tuskegee' Comes to Stores Today – Slew of TV Spots Join In Celebrating Its Songs"], ''Angry Country''. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120623132727/http://magazine.angrycountry.com/article.php?story=20120326075146699 |date=June 23, 2012 }}. Retrieved April 11, 2012</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|title=Reinventing Lionel Richie|url=https://americansongwriter.com/reinventing-lionel-richie|magazine=American Songwriter|author= Evan Schlansky|date=March 23, 2012|access-date=April 15, 2021}}</ref> The album returned him to the top of the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, his first number one album there since ''Dancing on the Ceiling'', and achieved platinum status within six weeks of release.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}

On June 28, 2015, Richie played to an audience of between 100,000 and 120,000 people at the [[Glastonbury Festival]], England. His show was described as "triumphant" by the [[BBC]] and was followed by his return to the top of the UK albums chart with a reissued compilation album of his work as both a solo artist and with the Commodores.<ref>{{cite news | url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-33400359 | title= Lionel Richie storms album chart | work= BBC News | date= July 5, 2015 | access-date= July 5, 2015 | archive-date= July 5, 2015 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150705093515/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-33400359 | url-status= live }}</ref> In September 2017, [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] announced that Richie would be a judge for the revival of ''[[American Idol]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ew.com/tv/2017/09/29/american-idol-luke-bryan-lionel-richie-judges/|title=Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan to join ''American Idol'' as judges|first=Oliver|last=Gettell|date=September 29, 2017|website=EW.com|access-date=December 3, 2020|archive-date=September 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170929221856/http://ew.com/tv/2017/09/29/american-idol-luke-bryan-lionel-richie-judges/|url-status=live}}</ref> Richie has been a judge on the reboot for seven seasons, including 2024.<ref>{{cite web |title=Lionel Richie -- Judge Biography |url=https://abc.com/shows/american-idol/cast/lionel-richie |website=American Idol |publisher=ABC |access-date=February 5, 2022 |archive-date=February 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205195303/https://abc.com/shows/american-idol/cast/lionel-richie |url-status=live }}</ref>{{update inline|date=May 2023}}

In May 2017, Richie was honored at Berklee College of Music during its 2017 commencement concert when graduating students performed a medley of his discography. Richie was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://theboot.com/lucinda-williams-honorary-doctorate-berklee-college-of-music/|title=Lucinda Williams Receives Honorary Doctorate From Berklee|website=The Boot|first=Hannahlee|last=Aller|date=May 18, 2017|access-date=April 6, 2020|archive-date=December 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206024432/http://theboot.com/lucinda-williams-honorary-doctorate-berklee-college-of-music/|url-status=live}}</ref> On December 3, 2017, Richie received the Kennedy Center Honors.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/kennedy-center-honors-ll-cool-j-gloria-estefan-lionel-richie-8055020/|title=Kennedy Center Honors Recognize LL Cool J, Gloria Estefan & Lionel Richie, Skip Drama|website=billboard.com|publisher=Billboard|last=Olson|first=Cathy Applefeld|date=4 December 2017|access-date=17 September 2022|archive-date=September 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920163857/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/kennedy-center-honors-ll-cool-j-gloria-estefan-lionel-richie-8055020/|url-status=live}}</ref> In October 2017, it was reported that Richie had secured the rights to produce a [[Curtis Mayfield]] [[Biographical film|biopic]].<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/lionel-richie-to-produce-curtis-mayfield-biopic-121331/|title=Lionel Richie to Produce Curtis Mayfield Biopic|last=Kreps|first=Daniel|date=October 11, 2017|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=April 6, 2020}}</ref>

On March 25, 2019, Richie announced a 33-date tour across North America for the summer. His 'Hello Tour' started in May at Arlington's KAABOO Festival and ran through August.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://concertfix.com/tours/lionel-richie|title=Lionel Richie Tour Dates & Concert Tickets 2019|website=ConcertFix|language=en|access-date=March 26, 2019|archive-date=March 26, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190326031244/https://concertfix.com/tours/lionel-richie|url-status=live}}</ref>

In May 2023, Richie was invited to be a headline act at [[Windsor Castle]] for the [[Coronation Concert]], in celebration of the [[Coronation of Charles III and Camilla]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/tradition/a43601236/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-coronation-concert-at-windsor-castle/ | title=Everything You Need to Know About the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle | date=May 3, 2023 | access-date=May 5, 2023 | archive-date=May 5, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505194355/https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/tradition/a43601236/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-coronation-concert-at-windsor-castle/ | url-status=live }}</ref> Richie is the First Global Ambassador and First Chairman of the Global Ambassador Group for [[the Prince's Trust]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://lionelrichie.com/princes-trust/ | title=Prince's Trust | access-date=May 6, 2023 | archive-date=May 6, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230506083335/https://lionelrichie.com/princes-trust/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

===Popularity in the Arab world===
Richie is a popular musician in various [[Arab states]],<ref name="NPR news">{{cite web|url =https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6576395|title =Lionel Richie: The Key to Peace in the Middle East|publisher =NPR|date =December 4, 2006|access-date =June 12, 2007|archive-date =December 13, 2007|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20071213050335/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6576395|url-status =live}}</ref><ref name="Contact Music">{{cite web|url=http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/richie%20beloved%20in%20iraq_02_06_2006|title=Richie Beloved in Iraq|date=June 2, 2006|access-date=June 12, 2007|archive-date=October 12, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012170921/http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/richie%20beloved%20in%20iraq_02_06_2006|url-status=live}}</ref> and has performed in Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Libya.<ref name="ABC news">{{cite news
|url =https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=1974794
|author =John Berman
|title =Baghdad's Lionel Richie Obsession
|work =ABC News
|date =May 19, 2006
|access-date =June 12, 2007
|archive-date =February 7, 2007
|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20070207133127/http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=1974794
|url-status =live
}}</ref> John Berman for ''[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]'' reported in 2006 that "Grown Iraqi men get misty-eyed by the mere mention of his name. 'I love Lionel Richie,' they say. They can sing an entire Lionel Richie song." Berman wrote that Richie said he was told that Iraqi civilians were playing "All Night Long" the night [[2003 invasion of Iraq|U.S. tanks invaded Baghdad]]. Richie was against the war and has said he would like to perform in [[Baghdad]] someday.<ref name="ABC news" />