Hello Marbella
A pinnacle of pop music, recognized around the world, the legend that is Lionel Ritchie is heading to Marbella this summer. His string of nine No. 1 hits in nine consecutive years, is a music business record and there is no stopping him.
Born and raised in Tuskegee, Alabama on June 20th, 1949 to parents, Lionel Brockman Richie Sr and Alberta R Foster, Lionel grew up on the campus of the Tuskegee Institute, where most of his family had worked for two generations.
A star tennis player in his youth; Lionel once considered studying to become a priest in the Episcopal Church but eventually settled on a music career. In the mid 1960’s Lionel started many R&B groups before joining the Commodores as a singer and saxophonist in 1968. They signed a contract with Atlantic Records for one song, before joining Motown Records as a support act to The Jackson 5. The Commodores then started finding success in their own right, with hits with songs like ‘Brick House’, ‘Easy’ and ‘Three Times A Lady’ and went on to become the most successful act on the Motown label during the latter half of the '70s. A duet with Diana Ross, "Endless Love" in 1981 became the most successful single in Motown history, topping the charts for a remarkable nine weeks.
Lionel released his first solo album in late 1982, an immediate hit, it reached number three on the pop charts on its way to multi-platinum status. The follow up, ‘Can’t Slow Down’, boasted five top ten singles and won the 1984 Grammy for Album of the Year. Lionel was invited to perform at the closing ceremony of the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
In 1985, Richie put his superstar status to work for a greater good, joining Michael Jackson in co-writing the USA for Africa charity single "We Are the World"; the all-star recording helped raise millions of dollars for famine relief. In the late 80s, Richie took a break from the music business, exhausted after two decades of recording and performing, and also occupied with taking care of his ailing father.
Finally, in 1996, Richie returned to the studio with his first album or new material in a decade.
In 1975, Lionel married his college sweetheart Brenda Harvey. In 1983 Lionel and his wife adopted Nicole Camille Escovedo, the two-year-old daughter of one of the members of his band, and niece of dummer Sheila E. They raised her as their daughter, Nicole Ritchie and adopted her legally when he was nine. While they were still married Lionel began a relationship with Diane Alexander. He then separated from Harvey and the couple divorced in 1993 after nearly 18 years of marriage. Lionel went onto marry Diane in 1995 but their marriage ended in 2003. During their time together the couple welcomed son, Miles Brockman and daughter, Sofia Richie.
In 2008, Lionel became a grandfather when Nicole gave birth to a baby girl with lead singer of US band Good Charlotte, Joel Madden, His second grandchild was born in 2009.
In 2016, Richie headed to Vegas and performed a residency at the Planet Hollywood Zappos Theater. Two years later, Richie began a new high-profile role as a judge on American Idol, introducing him to younger generations of fans. A recording of his show, Hello: Live From Last Vegas released in 2019 and Richie once again embarked on a mammoth 33-date tour of North America.
Over his astonishing career Lionel has garnered many awards, including three Grammys, several American Music Awards, and a 1986 Oscar for Best Original Song with his hit theme to the film White Knights, "Say You, Say Me."
In May this year, Richie was invited to be a headline act at Windsor Castle for the Coronation Concert and this summer he will be performing at Starlite in Marbella, to purchase tickets visit ticketmaster.es and see the legend live for yourself.