Lionel Richie walked onto Good Morning America with that soft, easy smile we all know. Within seconds, Robin Roberts sat him down for a simple “Fact or Fiction” game, and you can almost see his whole life flash across his face.
In just a few questions, he admits things he has waved away for years. Yes, the Commodores really did open for the Jackson 5 back in 1971, with a tiny 12-year-old Michael Jackson acting like a full-grown star. Yes, he once planned to become a priest and even picked out a seminary in Wyoming. No, he was never going to be a doctor. “All that reading?” he jokes. “Somebody’s not making it.”
Then comes the part that makes fans sit up. Lionel Richie, the man who wrote “Hello” and “Three Times a Lady,” cannot read music. He just hums the tune, plays it by ear, and somehow turns it into a classic.
The wild part is that, in the GMA game, Lionel almost tosses that Jackson 5 story away like a little trivia fact. “Yeah, we opened for them in 1971.” For most people, that sounds cute and quick. But if you know even a little bit of music history, you realize what he just said.
In a longer sit-down with David Letterman, Lionel slows down and tells the whole thing. He talks about the giant Commodores afros that had little Michael staring, how the 12-year-old “King of Pop in training” watched every show from the side of the stage like a sponge, and how the older guys treated him like a kid brother.
Lionel Richie On Michael Jackson, The Commodores | David Letterman
Lionel admits he still does it his old way: humming ideas, chasing lines, trusting his ear. Around Michael, there are animals in the room, a giant python sliding out at the worst possible moment, Michael calmly saying, “He wants to play, Lionel,” while Lionel is just trying to find the right words to change history. It is funny, strange, and huge all at once.