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Truly: The Sunday Times bestselling memoir of legendary Lionel Richie
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
‘A fascinating perspective on a great pop story.’ Sunday Times
‘A career this packed with highs – and personal lows – makes for dream memoir fodder.’ Daily Telegraph
The long-awaited memoir of legendary Lionel Richie.
As a storyteller second to none, Lionel Richie is ready to tell it all. In this intimate, deeply candid memoir, Lionel revisits hilarious and harrowing events to inspire all who doubt themselves or feel their dreams don’t matter. Lionel chronicles lessons learned during his unlikely story of remarkable success—his dramatic transformation from painfully shy, 'tragically' late bloomer to world-class entertainer and composer of love songs that have played as the soundtrack of our lives.
Funny, warm and riveting, Lionel recalls his childhood in Tuskegee, Alabama, where he grew up on its university campus during the heyday of the Civil Rights movement, raucous adventures as a member of The Commodores, coming-of-age in late 1960s Harlem, culture shock playing gigs on the French Riviera, the big break of being signed to Motown, his meteoric solo career that included an Olympics performance witnessed by two billion around the globe, all the way through to writing and recording 'We Are the World' and his current multi-generational fame as a judge on American Idol. Even with its turbulence, loss, and near-calamity, Lionel’s journey takes us on a thrill ride and delivers a memoir for the ages—reminding us of the power of love to elevate our own lives and our world.
Lionel Richie’s memoir includes three eight-page photo inserts.
Lionel Richie's book 'Truly' was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 2025-10-06.
‘A fascinating perspective on a great pop story.’ Sunday Times
‘A career this packed with highs – and personal lows – makes for dream memoir fodder.’ Daily Telegraph
The long-awaited memoir of legendary Lionel Richie.
As a storyteller second to none, Lionel Richie is ready to tell it all. In this intimate, deeply candid memoir, Lionel revisits hilarious and harrowing events to inspire all who doubt themselves or feel their dreams don’t matter. Lionel chronicles lessons learned during his unlikely story of remarkable success—his dramatic transformation from painfully shy, 'tragically' late bloomer to world-class entertainer and composer of love songs that have played as the soundtrack of our lives.
Funny, warm and riveting, Lionel recalls his childhood in Tuskegee, Alabama, where he grew up on its university campus during the heyday of the Civil Rights movement, raucous adventures as a member of The Commodores, coming-of-age in late 1960s Harlem, culture shock playing gigs on the French Riviera, the big break of being signed to Motown, his meteoric solo career that included an Olympics performance witnessed by two billion around the globe, all the way through to writing and recording 'We Are the World' and his current multi-generational fame as a judge on American Idol. Even with its turbulence, loss, and near-calamity, Lionel’s journey takes us on a thrill ride and delivers a memoir for the ages—reminding us of the power of love to elevate our own lives and our world.
Lionel Richie’s memoir includes three eight-page photo inserts.
Lionel Richie's book 'Truly' was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 2025-10-06.
477 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 30, 2025
509 people are currently reading
1862 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 240 reviews
November 5, 2025
Five stars. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Pure soul. Pure inspiration.
What an incredible journey I just finished. Lionel Richie’s Truly was everything I needed and more. He’s been one of my all-time favorite artists since childhood and this music was the soundtrack of our home. I can still see my parents slow dancing in the living room, glasses of cognac and wine in hand, Lionel spinning on vinyl. Sighhh. This memoir? Whew. It’s rich with history, heart, and honesty. From Tuskegee roots to stories about his family knowing Booker T. Washington and George Washington Carver was just incredible. Hearing Lionel talk about navigating life, music, and identity in an industry that tried to box him in… and still finding his own way with grace? That hit deep.
He doesn’t shy away from his mistakes or the lessons learned along the way. But what I loved most, more than the fame, awards, or success was how much he values his family, faith, and simple joy. A man who’s proudest of making his family proud. A gardener at heart.
And let me tell you, hearing it narrated by Blair Underwood? Absolutely chef’s kiss. 🎧
What an incredible journey I just finished. Lionel Richie’s Truly was everything I needed and more. He’s been one of my all-time favorite artists since childhood and this music was the soundtrack of our home. I can still see my parents slow dancing in the living room, glasses of cognac and wine in hand, Lionel spinning on vinyl. Sighhh. This memoir? Whew. It’s rich with history, heart, and honesty. From Tuskegee roots to stories about his family knowing Booker T. Washington and George Washington Carver was just incredible. Hearing Lionel talk about navigating life, music, and identity in an industry that tried to box him in… and still finding his own way with grace? That hit deep.
He doesn’t shy away from his mistakes or the lessons learned along the way. But what I loved most, more than the fame, awards, or success was how much he values his family, faith, and simple joy. A man who’s proudest of making his family proud. A gardener at heart.
And let me tell you, hearing it narrated by Blair Underwood? Absolutely chef’s kiss. 🎧
November 3, 2025
A memoir from the music legend, my guy, Lionel Richie. Is this a great memoir, no. Is it entertaining and full of people who have impacted the last 75 years of pop culture? Yes. Yes, it is. I did actually appreciate some of the storytelling choices, but overall thought the book was way too long and wasn’t nearly as strong in the back half as it was at the start. His childhood through the early years of stardom were really compelling and engaging, but by the 90’s there wasn’t much there there. Also, the book could’ve been juicier. He plays it safe and avoids the gossip. If you love Lionel Richie this is a big yes, otherwise I’m not sure you’ll be as taken by it.
November 6, 2025
Truly a bad book. Long, laborious opening section that drags on with minute details of his dull upbringing and early career. He doesn't even get to the Commodore's first record being made until page 166, and then he rushes through that! His early years could have been cut down to a few dozen pages, but this guy is preachy and thinks he's super spiritually inspiring (he originally wanted to become an Episcopalian priest).
He not. Lionel Richie reveals himself to be a typical liberal race-baiting egotist who claims God is on his side while the singer has no problem sleeping around, grabbing his crotch on stage, or doing all sorts of ungodly things. Way too much of the book is used up pushing his perspective on race relations and I think he uses the word black (incorrectly capitalized) more often than in any book I've ever read. It's funny that in one paragraph alone he twice uses the capitalized word black to denote dark skin color but then twice uses lower case white for people with lighter skin tone. So much for accuracy and fairness. Stop the crusading and propaganda.
Much of this is creative non-fiction because (as he states up front) he can't really remember all of it so it is "not written to represent word-for-word reenactments. My job has been to evoke the real feeling of the words spoken, in keeping with the true essence of the mood and spirit in which they were conveyed." What a bunch of hogwash--it becomes obvious quickly that he's creatively fine-tuning the old stories he wants to tell in order to make himself look better or at least add something exciting to the yawn-inducing pages.
It upset me to hear his excuse for trying to graduate college by basically skipping a final semester to go off and play concerts. He obviously didn't understand the value of higher education nor how universities work. Though he couldn't blame the mostly-black school's denial on racism, he manages to take other things people say or do out of context. Like when the group is hired to be in the Billy Dee Williams movie about Scott Joplin and the director asks them to "do that thing you guys always do together." Richie takes that as a racist comment ("Maybe they assumed that all black people kind of danced together"). Huh? He's in a group of all black men who have performed on stage for years with coordinated dancing while music is playing, what is racist about asking the group to reproduce that on film?
He flings those "racist" allegations often when people aren't saying anything about race. Richie also makes the unfounded claim that radio in the mid-1970s was "segregated" so he had a hard time getting airplay. I was in the business then and in addition to the Jacksons or Fifth Dimension early in the decade, by 1975 the list of top 25 songs for the year included Earth, Wind & Fire, Minnie Ripperton, Labelle, and War. Those are not shrinking-violet white performers but represent very in-your-face black culture. Lionel, stop spinning everything racist and acting like you somehow overcame a music business working against your skin color--maybe it was your soft songwriting skills that kept you from always getting early airplay on stations.
And by the way, Richie uses the full N-word more often than I've ever seen in a memoir, which is disturbing, inappropriate, and unnecessary (just writing "the N-word" is sufficient for anyone that feels the need to explain something).
There are a few good stories. He does give interesting details on writing a few of his songs, like Endless Love and All Night Long. And there's a very nice longer chapter on We Are the World. But there aren't enough of these between the minutia of his everyday life, his insecurities, and the focus on his fame. He namedrops like crazy and won't stop bragging about himself (though he does give credit to the few who gave him his start and really began the Commodores), despite his very limited success until he finally makes it big about 200 pages in.
Then come 150 pages about his career, which contain the bulk of the way-too-long book that's worth reading, but it all comes to a screaming stop when he cheats on his wife in the middle of his greatest creative peak. They get a divorce that takes three years to finalize and he withdraws from show business, claiming depression and that he suddenly discovers he always was ADHD. Right. He uses the book to then plead his case that he was the good guy in the relationship, he shouldn't have been forced to give half of his career income to his ex, and that she didn't inspire almost any of his songs.
What a creepy, cruel "man of God." Lionel Richie is caught cheating, it blows up in his face, he starts spouting that he suddenly has all these physical conditions that we're supposed to feel sorry for, and he blames his ex-wife for every single problem. Instead of manning up to his mistakes he runs away embarrassed and tries to convince everyone he is the one suffering. It must be rough to be a rich egotistical jerk.
Then during all of this he claims to have a "nervous breakdown" (self-diagnosed, as he is always looking for sympathy) over his father's death, goes to Jamaica to recover for five days (poor guy), and is told by an old man there that he happens upon "You must survive because you are our beacon of hope." Richie calls it "a message from God." Seriously? Is this guy so delusional that he wants to manipulate readers into thinking that he's the savior of the world after being caught cheating on his wife and adopted daughter? Disgusting.
After getting his live-in affair-partner girlfriend pregnant he eventually marries again but divorces a few years later because he feels the call to get out on the road to tour (namely, his ego needed stroking after a long dry spell) and she wanted him home with the family. "Being a loving, supportive dad has always been central to my identity." Right, Lionel, just keep telling yourself that as your actions take you around the world without them.
Then he gets to his self-proclaimed "distinguished" end of career, where he quotes someone calling him a "hero" and his manager pushes the industry to give him all sorts of lifetime achievements awards, telling Lionel, "You're the GOAT."
The greatest of what? He had a few big-selling albums in the 1980s but blurred genres and isn't at the top of any list.
I found him to be the opposite internally of the humble shy guy he claims to be externally. I also don't think he's a "legend" in the same class as some of the artists he worked with or befriended (like Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, or the original Motown gang). And instead of inspiring readers by being a great role model, this hefty waste makes us appreciate him much less. Truly.
He not. Lionel Richie reveals himself to be a typical liberal race-baiting egotist who claims God is on his side while the singer has no problem sleeping around, grabbing his crotch on stage, or doing all sorts of ungodly things. Way too much of the book is used up pushing his perspective on race relations and I think he uses the word black (incorrectly capitalized) more often than in any book I've ever read. It's funny that in one paragraph alone he twice uses the capitalized word black to denote dark skin color but then twice uses lower case white for people with lighter skin tone. So much for accuracy and fairness. Stop the crusading and propaganda.
Much of this is creative non-fiction because (as he states up front) he can't really remember all of it so it is "not written to represent word-for-word reenactments. My job has been to evoke the real feeling of the words spoken, in keeping with the true essence of the mood and spirit in which they were conveyed." What a bunch of hogwash--it becomes obvious quickly that he's creatively fine-tuning the old stories he wants to tell in order to make himself look better or at least add something exciting to the yawn-inducing pages.
It upset me to hear his excuse for trying to graduate college by basically skipping a final semester to go off and play concerts. He obviously didn't understand the value of higher education nor how universities work. Though he couldn't blame the mostly-black school's denial on racism, he manages to take other things people say or do out of context. Like when the group is hired to be in the Billy Dee Williams movie about Scott Joplin and the director asks them to "do that thing you guys always do together." Richie takes that as a racist comment ("Maybe they assumed that all black people kind of danced together"). Huh? He's in a group of all black men who have performed on stage for years with coordinated dancing while music is playing, what is racist about asking the group to reproduce that on film?
He flings those "racist" allegations often when people aren't saying anything about race. Richie also makes the unfounded claim that radio in the mid-1970s was "segregated" so he had a hard time getting airplay. I was in the business then and in addition to the Jacksons or Fifth Dimension early in the decade, by 1975 the list of top 25 songs for the year included Earth, Wind & Fire, Minnie Ripperton, Labelle, and War. Those are not shrinking-violet white performers but represent very in-your-face black culture. Lionel, stop spinning everything racist and acting like you somehow overcame a music business working against your skin color--maybe it was your soft songwriting skills that kept you from always getting early airplay on stations.
And by the way, Richie uses the full N-word more often than I've ever seen in a memoir, which is disturbing, inappropriate, and unnecessary (just writing "the N-word" is sufficient for anyone that feels the need to explain something).
There are a few good stories. He does give interesting details on writing a few of his songs, like Endless Love and All Night Long. And there's a very nice longer chapter on We Are the World. But there aren't enough of these between the minutia of his everyday life, his insecurities, and the focus on his fame. He namedrops like crazy and won't stop bragging about himself (though he does give credit to the few who gave him his start and really began the Commodores), despite his very limited success until he finally makes it big about 200 pages in.
Then come 150 pages about his career, which contain the bulk of the way-too-long book that's worth reading, but it all comes to a screaming stop when he cheats on his wife in the middle of his greatest creative peak. They get a divorce that takes three years to finalize and he withdraws from show business, claiming depression and that he suddenly discovers he always was ADHD. Right. He uses the book to then plead his case that he was the good guy in the relationship, he shouldn't have been forced to give half of his career income to his ex, and that she didn't inspire almost any of his songs.
What a creepy, cruel "man of God." Lionel Richie is caught cheating, it blows up in his face, he starts spouting that he suddenly has all these physical conditions that we're supposed to feel sorry for, and he blames his ex-wife for every single problem. Instead of manning up to his mistakes he runs away embarrassed and tries to convince everyone he is the one suffering. It must be rough to be a rich egotistical jerk.
Then during all of this he claims to have a "nervous breakdown" (self-diagnosed, as he is always looking for sympathy) over his father's death, goes to Jamaica to recover for five days (poor guy), and is told by an old man there that he happens upon "You must survive because you are our beacon of hope." Richie calls it "a message from God." Seriously? Is this guy so delusional that he wants to manipulate readers into thinking that he's the savior of the world after being caught cheating on his wife and adopted daughter? Disgusting.
After getting his live-in affair-partner girlfriend pregnant he eventually marries again but divorces a few years later because he feels the call to get out on the road to tour (namely, his ego needed stroking after a long dry spell) and she wanted him home with the family. "Being a loving, supportive dad has always been central to my identity." Right, Lionel, just keep telling yourself that as your actions take you around the world without them.
Then he gets to his self-proclaimed "distinguished" end of career, where he quotes someone calling him a "hero" and his manager pushes the industry to give him all sorts of lifetime achievements awards, telling Lionel, "You're the GOAT."
The greatest of what? He had a few big-selling albums in the 1980s but blurred genres and isn't at the top of any list.
I found him to be the opposite internally of the humble shy guy he claims to be externally. I also don't think he's a "legend" in the same class as some of the artists he worked with or befriended (like Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, or the original Motown gang). And instead of inspiring readers by being a great role model, this hefty waste makes us appreciate him much less. Truly.
October 20, 2025
Truly
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚 Memior
🎶 You Are - Lionel Richie (my fav LR song)
One sentence synopsis:
Lionel Richie’s memoir the covers his time in The Commodores, the civil rights movement, going solo, We Are The World and now with American Idol.
Book Review:
This was pretty good! I wouldn’t necessarily call myself a Lionel Richie fan but growing up I knew who he was. I knew a lot of his songs. And so I figured why not read this.
I found his life story pretty interesting. I really liked hearing how certain songs came to be and his relationships with so many other amazing artists. I truly had no idea how integrated he was in the music scene back in the day. He was bigger than I thought he was!
He really is a very positive and uplifting person. And that comes off in the way he describes all of his experiences, even the hard ones. The one part that did give me pause was his personal relationship/friendship with Michael Jackson because it didn’t really touch on a lot of the controversy surrounding him there. But then again, maybe that wasn’t his story to tell. But I guess it also kind of brings up that he seems to fluff up a lot of drama that happened in his life. I appreciate memoirs that can show you the whole person and I really kind of feel like we only got the side that he wanted you to see.
My favorite part though was his little story about taking a car ride with Stevie Wonder in the driver seat 👀😅.
✨Thank you @harperone for my #gifted copy!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚 Memior
🎶 You Are - Lionel Richie (my fav LR song)
One sentence synopsis:
Lionel Richie’s memoir the covers his time in The Commodores, the civil rights movement, going solo, We Are The World and now with American Idol.
Book Review:
This was pretty good! I wouldn’t necessarily call myself a Lionel Richie fan but growing up I knew who he was. I knew a lot of his songs. And so I figured why not read this.
I found his life story pretty interesting. I really liked hearing how certain songs came to be and his relationships with so many other amazing artists. I truly had no idea how integrated he was in the music scene back in the day. He was bigger than I thought he was!
He really is a very positive and uplifting person. And that comes off in the way he describes all of his experiences, even the hard ones. The one part that did give me pause was his personal relationship/friendship with Michael Jackson because it didn’t really touch on a lot of the controversy surrounding him there. But then again, maybe that wasn’t his story to tell. But I guess it also kind of brings up that he seems to fluff up a lot of drama that happened in his life. I appreciate memoirs that can show you the whole person and I really kind of feel like we only got the side that he wanted you to see.
My favorite part though was his little story about taking a car ride with Stevie Wonder in the driver seat 👀😅.
✨Thank you @harperone for my #gifted copy!
October 22, 2025
4.5 stars. Great book. I really enjoyed it throughout. As a Gen Xer, I knew every song and every reference, so it was great to see behind the scenes. Who knew he really just fell into his career? Of course, so many of his songs have just become timeless. As a creative person, I came away with things I can put into practice. Since I’ve watched him on American Idol, I can hear him in my head narrating. recommend!
November 7, 2025
Lionel Richie‘s music takes me back to when I was young and just makes me happy. That was why I chose to listen to this book which was read by Blair Underwood. I had no idea that it would be the best memoir I’ve read! For someone so incredibly successful and famous, Lionel Richie is extremely humble. There were so many great nuggets of wisdom in this book. I really really enjoyed hearing about his life and his path.
October 16, 2025
The best book I've read in a long time!! You forget how many hits Lionel has with the Commodores & as a solo artist (& I've seen both in concert). I had to stop a few times to listen to songs & watch the We Are the World video :) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
October 11, 2025
What a fabulous autobiography this was for me! Although I’ve been a lifelong fan and even preordered this back in February, it was still an amazing read. Spanning from growing up in the south in the throws of the Civil Rights Movement to his present time on American Idol, this was a fascinating read. I’ve always wondered, and found out, how someone who is known worldwide as one of America’s greatest songwriters and doesn’t read a lick of music, can write all those songs I grew up loving. Some may say he didn’t write enough about the not so flattering pitfalls from his past. I’m happy this didn’t seem to be full of gossip. What a fantastic read!
October 29, 2025
Lionel Richie’s Truly is more than an autobiography—it’s a masterclass from a man whose developed the ultimate gift of the gab. His storytelling flows Easy Like Sunday Morning, full of inspiration, humor, and heart.
October 4, 2025
This writing is what you would expect from a man who had a legendary career, filled with great stories and how he wrote some of his biggest hits.
Being asked to join The Commodores on a college campus (and how they chose their name) to opening for the Jackson 5, which started a long friendship with Michael, and starting to get his songs on the Commodore albums leading to a solo career are all here.
There are interesting stories like Richie at first refusing to think he was able to be a solo singer to the early smash hits that got ignore from certain radio stations for his color (or being "too white" for black radio).He writes about how he wrote some of his hits for Sinatra and Streisand only to be told to keep the songs, which became money makers, and how he and Diana Ross didn't sing the recording together on "Endless Love" in the studio, to the behind the scenes writing of "We Are The World" (which was covered on the Netflix doc). For a 400-plus page book, I read in 3 days or less. The flow of the book was wonderful and didn't disappoint.
Even if not a fan of his music (why wouldn't someone be?), readers can learn how to craft songs and use his musical/business insight to study the music business from someone who did it all.
Being asked to join The Commodores on a college campus (and how they chose their name) to opening for the Jackson 5, which started a long friendship with Michael, and starting to get his songs on the Commodore albums leading to a solo career are all here.
There are interesting stories like Richie at first refusing to think he was able to be a solo singer to the early smash hits that got ignore from certain radio stations for his color (or being "too white" for black radio).He writes about how he wrote some of his hits for Sinatra and Streisand only to be told to keep the songs, which became money makers, and how he and Diana Ross didn't sing the recording together on "Endless Love" in the studio, to the behind the scenes writing of "We Are The World" (which was covered on the Netflix doc). For a 400-plus page book, I read in 3 days or less. The flow of the book was wonderful and didn't disappoint.
Even if not a fan of his music (why wouldn't someone be?), readers can learn how to craft songs and use his musical/business insight to study the music business from someone who did it all.
October 16, 2025
What a life and career. Really enjoyed hearing Jose life, up to now, story. It’s inspiring, heartfelt, and reflective and emotional.
When talking about the making of We Are the World and all the artists he’s worked with over the many decades of his life, it was shocking to hear all the names of those younger than him that are no longer here. It was great hearing the origin of all his great songs. I went straight to Spotify to make a playlist for all the songs that I’ve always loved. Highly recommend. My only wish is that he would have narrated himself, but thought Blair Underwood did a great job.
When talking about the making of We Are the World and all the artists he’s worked with over the many decades of his life, it was shocking to hear all the names of those younger than him that are no longer here. It was great hearing the origin of all his great songs. I went straight to Spotify to make a playlist for all the songs that I’ve always loved. Highly recommend. My only wish is that he would have narrated himself, but thought Blair Underwood did a great job.
October 16, 2025
4+ Hello...Is it me you're looking for? I love Lionel Richie, so I was super excited to learn more about his life.
January 4, 2026
I enjoyed this memoir. It was very long, but I guess that is relevant because Lionel Ritchie has had a long career. I loved his stories about working with Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, & many many others. I liked how he said that no one is ever really dead as long as you say their name….until the last person says their name is when they are truly gone. I thought that was very interesting and true! Lionel didn’t read the book, which was disappointing but Blair Underwood read it and that was a great choice. I loved listening to him.
October 24, 2025
Love Lionel Richie and his work as a Commodore. My Endless Love was my wedding song. That was the most successful single of both of their careers. Enjoyed hearing about his life and the processes of his songwriting. He had strong family ties and values. His grandma lived to be 103. I think this could’ve been a little shorter, but overall a great memoir. I saw in concert a year or two ago and he still sounds great!
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December 19, 2025
Title: Truly . Lionel Richie, nonfiction. The book truly the book is a memoir about the life and career of Lionel Ritchie.I enjoyed reading this book so much. I really liked reading about his experiences and how this painfully shy person became the superstar that he is today. I would recommend this book to anyone who needs a good memoir.
January 3, 2026
this was a delight!
December 12, 2025
Incredible!!! I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t recognize the author’s songs, but I’ll admit I only knew a fraction about his life story.
The first third of this book was fascinating as it was more a history lesson about the 1960’s and 70’s. I learned a great deal about the city of Tuskegee, which was way more informative than a typical account of the university. The author grew up amongst intellectuals, artists, and elites, thus was sheltered from a great deal of hardship that his contemporaries experienced. It was amazing to read about how the Commodores were formed and came up locally and in Harlem amongst many major players within the music industry, in the shadow of the Vietnam war and draft.
The book rolls on from there as he reaches the height of success, fame, and fortune that comes along with his incredible musical talent. As expected, there are highs and lows, but the humility of his accounts makes him an excellent narrator. It’s also good fun to hear his side of friendships with some of the biggest, most talented acts in the music industry. Despite his mistakes in his personal life, he comes off as a class act which was my impression from other documentaries he’s participated in.
I gained a deeper appreciation for the songwriter and artist - the fact that he was able to achieve what he did, being dyslexic, from the rural south, with no support from his family, is a testament to his talent and determination. His co-author did an excellent job at keeping the story interesting and tying together loose threads.
This was an amazing read that I’d recommend to anyone with a heart as I think anyone could enjoy his story.
The first third of this book was fascinating as it was more a history lesson about the 1960’s and 70’s. I learned a great deal about the city of Tuskegee, which was way more informative than a typical account of the university. The author grew up amongst intellectuals, artists, and elites, thus was sheltered from a great deal of hardship that his contemporaries experienced. It was amazing to read about how the Commodores were formed and came up locally and in Harlem amongst many major players within the music industry, in the shadow of the Vietnam war and draft.
The book rolls on from there as he reaches the height of success, fame, and fortune that comes along with his incredible musical talent. As expected, there are highs and lows, but the humility of his accounts makes him an excellent narrator. It’s also good fun to hear his side of friendships with some of the biggest, most talented acts in the music industry. Despite his mistakes in his personal life, he comes off as a class act which was my impression from other documentaries he’s participated in.
I gained a deeper appreciation for the songwriter and artist - the fact that he was able to achieve what he did, being dyslexic, from the rural south, with no support from his family, is a testament to his talent and determination. His co-author did an excellent job at keeping the story interesting and tying together loose threads.
This was an amazing read that I’d recommend to anyone with a heart as I think anyone could enjoy his story.
December 21, 2025
Gripping and SO emotional. Fantastic read!
October 7, 2025
I couldn’t wait to read this book! I grew up listening to Lionel’s music and watching his videos. Saw him at Riverbend a few years ago. This book takes you on his life long journey from Tuskegee, Alabama to fame and fortune. So many wonderful stories of being in the music business for decades and decades, his two marriages his three children and now finding love, grandchildren and American Idol in his seventies! He’s such an icon and I enjoyed reading about his adventures.
October 18, 2025
Lionel Ritchie was that dude! I really enjoyed his autobiography. Getting a glimpse into his life, career and celebrity friendships made for an interesting read. His stories about MJ were a highlight and him being called Skeets by Quincy Jones a was hilarious.
Lionel Ritchie is a national treasure and I’m glad a new generation gets to learn of his greatness.
Lionel Ritchie is a national treasure and I’m glad a new generation gets to learn of his greatness.
November 15, 2025
I absolutely loved this audiobook! Blair Underwood did a wonderful job as narrator—channeling Lionel so well, that it often felt like I could hear Lionel in my AirPods. I couldn’t help but imagine how fun it would have been to hear Lionel himself read it; I think he would have slipped into humming a few bars or even singing some of the lines rather than just speaking them!
Listening to Truly felt like taking a journey back in time to my high-school and young-adult years. I found myself smiling and humming along as so many familiar songs resurfaced, each tied to its own memory. Richie’s storytelling is heartfelt and intimate, pulling you right into the room with him.
I was especially moved by his deep closeness to his family and the stable, loving home he grew up in—something he clearly never took for granted. Learning about his struggles with dyslexia, and the fact that he couldn’t read music, only made his accomplishments more astonishing. Despite those challenges, he wrote some of the most memorable and beloved pop songs of an entire era.
One line that stayed with me—and perfectly captures the spirit of this book—is when he says, “What you are about to experience is a celebration of the collaboration I was fortunate enough to have with God and the pact that I made with Him.”
Beautifully written, full of heart, and rich with nostalgia, Truly is an absolute delight. Highly recommended—especially in audio.
Listening to Truly felt like taking a journey back in time to my high-school and young-adult years. I found myself smiling and humming along as so many familiar songs resurfaced, each tied to its own memory. Richie’s storytelling is heartfelt and intimate, pulling you right into the room with him.
I was especially moved by his deep closeness to his family and the stable, loving home he grew up in—something he clearly never took for granted. Learning about his struggles with dyslexia, and the fact that he couldn’t read music, only made his accomplishments more astonishing. Despite those challenges, he wrote some of the most memorable and beloved pop songs of an entire era.
One line that stayed with me—and perfectly captures the spirit of this book—is when he says, “What you are about to experience is a celebration of the collaboration I was fortunate enough to have with God and the pact that I made with Him.”
Beautifully written, full of heart, and rich with nostalgia, Truly is an absolute delight. Highly recommended—especially in audio.
November 27, 2025
Most celebrity memoirs are filled with over-the-top drama (which I often enjoy!) Lionel Richie’s is more of a nice guy telling us his life story, which is really pretty normal. He seems like a gentle soul, and I found the book to be an easy listen.
November 21, 2025
Ritchie is generous with his stories, memories, and songwriting inspiration throughout this biography. Sharing everything from a place of gratitude makes this a very enjoyable read.
October 8, 2025
Highly recommend
A well-written, narrated, and storyline. An excellent memoir from beginning to end. Raw, real, funny, and introspective.
The biggest takeaway is LOVE. What a beautiful concept!
If you like Lionel Richie, The Commodores, or a great audio memoir, then read this book!
For a more detailed review, check out my blog - booksbydorothea: https://tinyurl.com/3auy6pht
A well-written, narrated, and storyline. An excellent memoir from beginning to end. Raw, real, funny, and introspective.
The biggest takeaway is LOVE. What a beautiful concept!
If you like Lionel Richie, The Commodores, or a great audio memoir, then read this book!
For a more detailed review, check out my blog - booksbydorothea: https://tinyurl.com/3auy6pht
October 15, 2025
A Man to TRULY Admire
I’ve always loved Lionel Richie’s music and have enjoyed appearances in the media, but now I have even more respect for this man. He truly is what he appears to be, doesn’t try to hide his weaknesses but maintains a positive attitude about life, love, family & success. He is witty and oh so talented. A MUST read!
I’ve always loved Lionel Richie’s music and have enjoyed appearances in the media, but now I have even more respect for this man. He truly is what he appears to be, doesn’t try to hide his weaknesses but maintains a positive attitude about life, love, family & success. He is witty and oh so talented. A MUST read!
October 22, 2025
What a fun listen. With every lyric he mentioned, my mind automatically started singing the tune. A seemingly humble & wise celebrity who never boasted or bragged about all of his connections & friends.
October 15, 2025
I didn’t know much about Lionel Richie other than his music and daughters. In fact I didn’t even know he had a son until this! I enjoyed reading about his career starting out with the Commodores and how he ended up solo. Bottom line, he seems like a nice guy.
October 18, 2025
Lionel Richie is one of my favorite artists since childhood. Reading his memoir, understanding his influences and the inspiration behind his songs was everything. Listening to the audio book by Blair Underwood was the cherry on top!
October 22, 2025
Really enjoyed this. Knowing him primarily from Idol I could imagine his voice telling the stories of his life. I hadn’t realized how many of his songs I’ve sung along to. Truly fascinating and inspiring.
October 9, 2025
Loved it. A perfect autobiography.
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