Lionel Richieguest of this episode hollywood reporterof Awards chatter Podcast, is a legendary singer/songwriter—first with the Commodores, then as a solo artist—as well as a record producer, american idol Judge, who most recently served as executive producer and subject of a Netflix documentary about the making of the landmark charity single “We Are the World” The greatest night in pop music history. The documentary became the most-watched English-language film on the streaming service the week it was removed last January and went on to receive three Emmy nominations, including best documentary or nonfiction special. It’s now up for the Academy Award for Best Documentary and was nominated for a Grammy for Best Musical.
The episode was taped in Studio A at the former A&M Studios in Hollywood (now known as Henson Studios), where Richie and 45 other A-listers recorded ” We are the World”.
For over 50 years, Richie has been a major figure in the music industry—in fact, as new york times Said recently that he “started in the Motown era and continued into the meme era.”
- His albums have sold over 100 million copies, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time.
- He has had five singles reach number one on the charts advertising billboard Hot 100 songs – “Endless Love,” “All Night Long,” “Hello,” “Say You, Say Me” and “Truly” – and 13 top ten songs.
- Three of his albums have reached number one on the charts advertising billboard 200— can’t slow down, dancing on the ceiling and Tuskegee ——Six of them ranked among the top 10.
- He has been nominated for 15 Grammy Awards, including six for Song of the Year for “Three Times a Lady,” “Lady,” “Endless Love,” “All Night Long,” “Hello” and “We Are the World” 》. Taylor Swifthe has received eight nominations in the category and has won four Grammy Awards in total: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for “Truly” in 1983; Album of the Year can’t slow down In 1985, he won the Best Producer of the Year (Non-Classical) Award; in 1986, he won the Best Song of the Year for “We Are the World”.
- He was also a three-time Oscar nominee for Best Original Song – as screenwriter of the 1982 film “Endless Love” and the 1985 film “Miss Celie’s Blues.” Purple and “Say You, Say Me” from the 1985 film white night – won the third of them.
- In addition, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994, the Apollo Theater Legends Hall of Fame in 2012, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. The 2016 Johnny Mercer Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the 2017 Kennedy Center Honors Award, the 2022 Library of Congress Gershwin Award for Popular Song, and the 2022 American Music Awards Icon Award in 2022.
In this episode, the 75-year-old discusses his path from small town Alabama to the world’s biggest stages, first with the Commodores and then as a solo artist; the hit songs he created along the way, and Why there are so many love-centered songs; and why “We Are the World” means so much to him.
