Lionel Richie says daughter Nicole Richie taught him about love.
Lionel Richie on adoption: ‘Forget biological, I don’t know the difference’
The 76-year-old musician and his first wife, Brenda Harvey, became Nicole’s legal guardians when she was three and later adopted her when she was nine and Lionel insisted Nicole “was the one who actually taught me how to fall in love”.
Speaking about his eldest daughter, whose biological parents are Lionel’s drummer Peter Escovedo and Karen Moss, he told Today with Jenna and Friends: “If I’ve ever met anyone in my life, Nicole was the one who actually taught me how to fall in love. Forget biological, I don’t know the difference.
“This little girl captivated me to the point where I told her, ‘I’m never going anywhere ever again.’ And of course she had this smile and this laugh.”
Lionel went on to marry Diane Alexander in 1995 before splitting in 2004 and they shar children Miles Richie, 31, and Sofia Richie, 27.
However, he admitted growing up with a famous father wasn’t easy for his children, particularly Nicole, 44.
He said: “The hardest part about this is they’re growing up, and I’m taking off again. Right when you think everything’s going to chill out, it goes to the next level and the next level. And now what’s happening is it’s becoming a problem.
“You go to a recital with Nicole. Now there’s enough pressure on Nicole just to be able to sit up there and do a kid’s recital. The lady walks in and says, ‘We have Lionel Richie in the audience tonight!’ Oh, come on, guys, give the kid a break. It became very difficult to kind of be in that present state of mind as dad and the public would not let me.”