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Award-winning legendary singer/songwriter Lionel Richie will be part of the panel for American Idol season 21, his fifth year with the reality competition series. The singer, who has an estimated net worth of $200 million, will be seen alongside pop princess Katy Perry and country superstar Luke Bryan. Viewers will get to see more of their charming personalities and fun banter on the new season of the series.
Lionel Richie is an extremely gifted singer, songwriter and record producer. The singer rose to fame after being part of the popular R&B group The Commodores and eventually established a successful solo career, winning multiple renowned awards throughout the course of his career. He has a major fan following and has maintained his legendary status for a long time.
Season 21 of American Idol is all set to premiere on Sunday, February 19, 2023, at 8 pm ET on ABC. Viewers are all set to witness some incredible talent in the form of singers and musicians as they try to impress the judges and viewers to keep moving forward in the competition. It will be interesting to see the variety of contestants this year.
American Idol judge Lionel Richie founded a number of R&B group early on in his life
Lionel Richie was born Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. on June 20, 1949, in Tuskegee, Alabama. He was a star tennis player while in school and eventually went on to graduate with a B.S. in Economics from Tuskegee Institute with the help of a tennis scholarship. While he was pursuing his education at Tuskegee in the 1960s, he became the founding member of several R&B groups.
In 1968, the judge joined The Commodores as a saxophone player and a singer. The R&B group initially signed a one-record deal with Atlantic Records the same year before shifting to Motown Records. Throughout the group's stint, they released some incredible music with songs like Three Times a Lady, Machine Gun, and Brick House, among others.
He also furthered his singing career by writing songs for other musicians, including Lady for Kenny Rogers, which became extremely successful. His duet with Diana Ross for the movie Endless Love earned him an academy award. Eventually, he established his career as a solo singer.
The singer's first solo album Lionel Richie in 1982 became an instant hit and sold millions of copies. Lionel's single Can't Slow Down continued his career's upward trajectory, winning him two Grammy awards. He also performed another hit song, All Night Long, from the album at the 1984 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.
He kept releasing several songs throughout the 1980s, including Running with the Night, Stuck on You, and Hello, among others. His other albums include Dancing on the Ceiling (1986), Just Go (2009), and Tuskegee (2012).
Lionel Richie has won several critically acclaimed awards in his lifetime. His song Say You, Say Me for the 1985 movie White Nights won an academy award. He also won three more Grammy Awards - Best Male Pop Vocal Performance in 1982 for his song Truly, Producer of the Year (Non-Classical) in 1984, and We Are the World (Song of the Year) in 1985, for which he collaborated with another legend, Michael Jackson.
The singer was also nominated for the Golden Globe award and was the first person to receive a RIAA Diamond album award.
Season 21 of American Idol will see Lionel Richie judge the contestants with fellow judges Katy and Luke. The show has already released a few snippets of the audition round where the judges are seen interacting friendly with all of the hopefuls. Viewers will have to wait and see who all make it to Hollywood Week as the Top 24.
Don't forget to tune in to the season 21 premiere this Sunday, February 19, 2023, at 8 pm ET on ABC.
