Music legend Lionel Richie, 77, wants everyone to know he’s doing great and back on tour. On June 30, 2026, the “American Idol” judge returned to the stage in Pittsburgh, nearly a week after getting so dizzy during his concert in St. Paul, Minnesota, that he cut the show short and was hospitalized overnight on June 24.
Richie’s next two concerts were canceled, but he returned to his “Sing A Song All Night Long” tour with Earth, Wind & Fire in Pittsburgh on June 30, as scheduled, and took time during the concert to speak for the first time about how he’s doing.
Lionel Richie Says He Wants to ‘Forget Everything That Happened’
In videos posted by fans at the concert, held at PPG Paints Arena, Richie looked relaxed and happy in a bright yellow bomber jacket as he quipped, “I had you worried there for a minute, huh?”
“I want you to know, not only did I scare your ass to death, I scared my ass to death as well,” he joked. “You have no idea what I have been through in the last 24 hours, listening to my friends tell me their advice on what I should be doing.”
“Now, let me just give you a few examples of the torture that I have been through,” Richie playfully said. “A friend of mine called me up and said, ‘Lionel, when you turn 80, things happen differently.’ I’m not 80! That’s the first problem.”
As the arena full of fans laughed, he continued, “The second thing: the lady texts me on the phone and says, ‘My husband bought me a scooter, and you can ride around the stage on a scooter.'”
“And then, there’s folks calling me up on the phone saying, ‘One dose. One finger of castor oil right behind the ear,'” Richie deadpanned, referring to a natural remedy some have claimed can help with dizziness. “Do you understand what I have been through?”
“So, tonight, I’m trying to forget everything that happened,” Richie shouted. “And remember one thing: I ain’t going nowhere!” As the crowd cheered, he took a seat at the piano to start playing “Easy,” one of his biggest hits with the Commodores.
What Happened to Lionel Richie?
Richie’s return comes nearly a week after the opening night of his tour at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul. About an hour into his performance, Richie admitted to the crowd he felt “dizzy” as he was performing “Dancing on the Ceiling.”
In videos taken by fans that quickly circulated, Richie was seen sitting down on the stage after telling the crowd, “What I have learned about my years of being in the business, when you are feeling dizzy, sit your ass down! And when you are feeling strange about yourself, sit your ass down. Now, I want you to know that’s the first time in the history of ‘Dancing on the Ceiling’ I’ve done it sitting down. That’s a bad sign, that’s a bad sign, y’all.”
Richie left the stage after that song and did not return. In a statement issued the following day by producer Live Nation Chicago, Richie was said to be “heartbroken” about having to cancel his next two concerts in Chicago and Columbus, Ohio, “under advisement by doctors to rest and return to full health.”
His ex-wife, Brenda Richie, tweeted on June 26, “Thanking everyone for their concern! Lionel is OK and will be back on the stage. ❤️❤️” She also clapped back at people who questioned him still touring at 77 by replying, “It is not up to you when people should retire. Keep your own house in order.”
Richie has concerts scheduled across the U.S. — plus stops in Malta and England — through late August. Though it hasn’t been officially announced, Richie is expected to return for his 10th season judging “American Idol,” taping auditions this fall.
