You may know him as the man who sings “Hello” and “All Night Long.” But behind those slow songs and big smiles is a true mastermind who went from college sax player to TV judge and multi-millionaire. This is the simple story of how he did it.
“Easy.” “Three Times a Lady.” “Endless Love.” “All Night Long.” He did not only sing the hits. He wrote them. For himself. For Diana Ross. For Kenny Rogers. For other stars who needed a song that would never die.
He even helped write “We Are the World,” a song that raised tens of millions for charity. He did not keep a cent from it. But the respect and power that came from that night still follow him into every room.
Today, he earns around $10 million each season to sit in a chair on American Idol and tell young singers the truth about this business.
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How Lionel Richie helped create “We Are the World” is another part of the story. The Netflix documentary trailer, The Greatest Night in Pop, takes you inside that session on January 25, 1985, when Richie and Michael Jackson’s song brought 46 of the biggest stars on the planet into one studio right after the American Music Awards (which Richie hosted). Richie went on to raise around $63 million for famine relief in Africa.
The Greatest Night in Pop | Official Trailer | Netflix
Long before that studio filled with 46 stars, the real pressure was in a quiet room at the Jackson family home in Encino. That is where Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson sat together for the very first time, trying to write a song that the whole world could sing. Richie later joked that Michael felt like a “Martian” because of his strange, bright energy.
In just one week, Jackson rushed through the music and demo, laying down drums, piano, strings, and the chorus so fast that it shocked Richie and producer Quincy Jones. All of this led to January 21, 1985, the night they finally finished the lyrics and melody to “We Are the World.”