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American singer Lionel Richie recently went off on stage, talking about how Diana Ross sang "Happy Birthday" to Beyoncé but kept refusing to sing their iconic song Endless Love with him.
Richie was performing at his San Francisco show on Friday, September 8, 2023, for his "Sing A Song All Night Long" tour. His audience was apparently expecting Diana Ross to show up and sing the duet with Lionel, but the singer quickly reprimanded them, as per The Shade Room, asking:
"What made you think tonight she was going to show up?"
Richie then went on to state that Ross wasn't going to be present.
Lionel also mentioned that the legendary singer has refused to perform together for 37 years. The whole ordeal quickly went viral and has since sparked hilarious reactions from fans online.
Lionel Richie's rant about Dianna Ross and Beyoncé sparks hilarious reactions online
Lionel Richie took a playful jab at fellow iconic singer Diana Ross at his show this Friday. As per Atlanta Black Star, the television personality first performed Just to Be Close to You and Zoom at the Chase Center. He talked about how Zoom stayed “at No.1 for seven weeks" in the Bay Area and how that is what catapulted his singing career to what it is today.
The All Night Long singer then started performing the ballad Endless Love, which is about two people professing their love for one another. Lionel wrote the song and released it in 1981.
While the legend was singing his verse, he reportedly hinted at a possible appearance of Diana Ross by pausing during her part, as per Riff Magazine. However, he quickly checked his fans' anticipation, saying,
"[For] 37 years, Diana said ‘No [to singing the song]. What made you think tonight she was going to show up? She ain’t coming."
Diana Ross was recently seen at a Beyoncé concert, where she surprised the Halo singer by serenading her with the Happy Birthday song. They were at the So-Fi stadium for Beyoncé's birthday concert on September 4, 2023. The venue was packed with 70,000 members of the Bey Hive as Ross swayed along with Beyonce, and both smiled at each other.
Richie mentioned the incident in his rant, saying,
"She's [Diana Ross is] over there singing happy birthday to Beyoncé. P*ssing me off."
Lionel Richie's sudden onslaught brought on hilarious memes and reactions from fans.
After going off about Beyoncé and Diana, Lionel Richie went back to singing Endless Love, urging the women in the audience to sing Ross's part, as per Hot New Hip Hop.
Diana and Lionel's one-time performance of Endless Love
Diana Ross and Richie have sung the song on stage only once in their whole career. They performed the duet at the Academy Awards in 1982. The Lady singer went on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen on August 27, 2021, where the host and Richie talked about a lot of things about Richie's career.
When the host, Andy Cohen, asked him why Endless Love has only been performed by Richie and Ross only once, the singer responded that it was due to scheduling conflicts. Lionel Richie mentioned it was on his bucket list to perform the iconic song with her co-star at a concert in the future.
Lionel Richie recently apologized to his fans on social media for canceling his show on Saturday, September 9, an hour after it was supposed to start. Richie said that the reason was bad weather conditions and went onstage on Monday, September 11, to quip that he even tried to bribe the pilot.
