Singer-songwriter Lionel Richie has shared a personal revelation about his initial career uncertainty, disclosing that he once contemplated entering the priesthood before discovering his true calling in music.
Speaking on “Today with Jenna & Friends” on Friday, Oct. 3, while promoting his new memoir, “Truly,” the 76-year-old artist reflected on his struggles to define his life’s path. “I couldn’t figure out what the heck to do with my life, couldn’t figure it out,” he said. “I’m as shy as I can be. And then I realized, maybe the priesthood might be the best way to go.”
Richie’s trajectory shifted after an early performance with the Commodores during college. The audience’s enthusiastic response convinced him that music, not ministry, was his true vocation. “Here’s what happened to change my mind,” he recalled. “I joined the Commodores in my second semester of my sophomore year and something amazing happened. A lady on the front row of some club said, ‘Sing it, baby!’”
That moment prompted Richie to abandon his initial plans. “I called back to the priest and I said, ‘I don’t think I’m going to be college material. I just gotta be honest with you,'” he shared. “There’s a moment when you have that moment.”
Richie graduated from Tuskegee Institute in 1974 with a degree in economics and business. By then, his involvement in music was already shaping his future. He joined the Mystics before becoming a founding member of the Commodores, which later achieved international fame.
Despite his eventual success, Richie admitted that performing never felt effortless early on. “Scared to death — can you imagine having panic attacks on stage?” he said. “But I wanted to be in this band so badly, and I wanted to be in this business.”
His decision to pursue music led to a career spanning five decades, marked by multiple Grammys and a catalog of enduring hits including “Hello,” “All Night Long,” “Easy,” “Sail On,” and “Endless Love.”
