Lionel Richie spills on his ‘crazy’ upcoming memoir, Truly

28 February 2025, 18:27

The ‘All Night Long’ singer will be releasing his autobiography this September.

Lionel Richie has spilled the beans about his upcoming memoir, Truly.

Speaking with Jimmy Kimmel ahead of the return of American Idol, the ‘Dancing on the Ceiling’ singer opened up about how his autobiography got its name while hinting at some of the juicy life stories which would be inside it.

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Truly was first announced in October 2024, but the former Commodores member only revealed the memoir’s name yesterday (February 27).

Lionel Richie talks about his new memoir on Kimmel

Discussing the title with Jimmy, Lionel revealed he chose the name Truly because of how people reacted to some of the stories which he penned in the text.

“I started writing the book, and the editor would say: ‘No, this didn’t happen. That can’t be true. This has to be a lie!’” the 75-year-old jokingly revealed.

Questioning Lionel about what shocking stories from his life have made it into the book, Jimmy said: “You told me once that you couldn’t write a book until some people died – so who died?”

“They ain’t dead yet,” Lionel admitted, adding: “So I had to [write] gingerly around certain areas.

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“You’re still going to get the truth, but not as definite as I would like it to be... not as colourful,” he added.

One story which the Grammy and Oscar-winner hinted would be discussed in his new book is how he came to leave The Commodores in the early 80s.

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But the ‘Three Times a Lady’ singer wouldn’t be drawn into sharing more about that story or others with Jimmy at this time.

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The official synopsis for Truly describes Lionel’s upcoming “deeply candid” memoir as being a book which will “[seek] to inspire all who doubt themselves or feel their dreams don’t matter by chronicling lessons learned” by the hugely successful singer.

The book will focus on how Lionel grew “from a painfully shy, ‘tragically’ late bloomer grappling with ADHD" to "a world-class entertainer and composer of love songs that have played like the soundtrack of our lives.”

Truly by Lionel Richie will be released on September 30, 2025.

American Idol begins airing in the US on Sunday, March 9.