Lionel Richie is an American producer, performer and composer. The peak of his popularity came in the mid-eighties. His hits occupied the top lines of the charts. The musician received many prestigious awards. The most valuable of them are Golden Globe and Oscar.
In 1949, a boy appeared in the family of teachers at the Tuskegee Institute in the southeastern United States. Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. was born on June 20. Parents lived on campus for students. The childhood of the future celebrity was calm and cloudless.
Carier start
The grown-up Lionel was assigned to the Joliet Township High School. Her program included many sports disciplines. The boy showed excellent tennis skills. At the end of the school, he was awarded a scholarship to continue his education at a local university.
When choosing a faculty, Richie seriously considered the career of a priest. He planned a theology course. However, joining the "Psi" fraternity was a good reason for the cancellation of the decision. By the mid-sixties, the future famous musician became interested in music. He learned to play the saxophone.
The young performer joined the group of music students "The Commodores". He was offered to take the place of a soloist and perform compositions in the style of R&B. The team specialized in dance tunes. By 1968, the group signed a contract with Motown Records.
Soon, recognition came. The ensemble began playing on the opening act of the then-famous "The Jackson 5". By the end of the seventies, Richie began to independently write compositions. Orders were given to him by such famous singers as Kenny Rogers.
The new song "Lady" has soared to the very top of the charts. The musical world spoke of a talented young composer. In 1981, Lionel performed a duet with Dina Ross. The song was used as a soundtrack for the painting "Endless Love". After an overwhelming success, Richie decided to leave the group and pursue a full-time solo career.
Solo performances
All further biography of the artist changed dramatically after leaving the ensemble. The debut solo album he recorded in 1981 in the music charts took third place. The circulation was sold in four million. While working on the disc, Lionel did not use dance rhythms.
He preferred the genres of musical lyrical. The right choice made the composer and singer famous at the same time. In popularity, Richie was not inferior to such luminaries of pop music as Prince or Michael Jackson. Glory came after the second album. "Can't Slow Down" won two Grammy awards.
The hit hit "All Night Long". Later, the composition was complemented by a colorful clip. The song was performed at the closing ceremony of the twenty-third Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Behind the hit came a few more top works.
Of these, the most successful were the sentimental ballads Penny Lover, Hello, Running with the Night, Stuck on You, and the song Say You, Say Me. The last composition was created for the painting "White Nights". She won both the Oscars and Golden Globes as the most original soundtrack.
In 1986, Richie recorded "Dancing on the Ceiling". It included new songs and the composition, which became a stunning success of the author. Then for a decade, Lionel worked on the accumulated materials and worked on a collection of the best hits. Live work in the studio was minimized.
Fans loved Ritchie's old works very much. But the lack of new songs affected the popularity of the idol. By 1996, the singer decided to remind his person about the new album. In the "Louder Than Words" disc, the author again turned to the dance rhythms of R&B.
The novelty did not cause enthusiasm. Negative experience forced the composer to follow the beaten path and release the collection "Renaissance". His title hit was the song "How Long". The song entered the United States and the UK in the top 40.
New take off
The singer began working in the studio in the two thousandth. He attended large-scale events only occasionally. But he was actively engaged in touring activities. He traveled around the country and starred in music videos. In 2003, Richie appeared on the screen in the company of the famous Spanish artist Enrique Iglesias in the movie "That Love a Woman" directed by Simon Brand.
On July 4, 2006, a concert was held at the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts. In it, along with Richie, the singer Fantasia Bravo performed. Then Lionel visited the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage jazz festival, where he performed his hits on the main venue. After a short break, the musician introduced the fans to the new disc "Coming Home".
The first song on the disc "I Call It Love" was the most successful in the work of Richie in a decade. In the national hit parade, she won sixth place. In the UK, the presentation of the album was held as part of the show "An Audience with Lionel Richie". After a couple of months, the musician performed his hit “Hello” at the “Grammy Awards” ceremony.
At the end of the two thousandth album "Just Go" was released. Richie took part in several charity events. At the farewell ceremony with Michael Jackson, he sang "Jesus is Love." For two years, the singer toured with Australian singer Sebastian Guy to raise funds to eliminate the effects of the elements.
A full-scale tour of America began after the release of "Tuskegee". In 2015, at the end of June, the musician participated in the legendary British Glastonberry Festival.
