Lionel Richie named 2022 American Music Awards Icon Award recipient

Richie will be honored on Nov 20th

Dick Clark Productions and ABC have announced that legendary performer, musician, producer and American Idol TV personality Lionel Richie will be honored with the prestigious Icon Award at the 2022 American Music Awards (AMAs), the world’s largest fan-voted award show, making him the only artist in history to be featured on the AMAs stage in every decade since the show’s inception. The Icon Award honors an artist whose body of work has marked a global influence over the music industry. As part of the recognition, the 17x AMA winner will take the stage to accept his 18th award and look back on his most iconic songs and AMA achievements over the years.

“I’m immensely grateful for a career that has taken me to places I never imagined that I’d go, from arenas worldwide to studio sets to the AMA stage,” Richie says. “I can recall one of the first times I got to perform at the AMAs. It was to sing ‘We Are the World’ among the most iconic musicians of my generation, so it is surreal to be receiving this recognition 36 years later.”

Hosted by Wayne Brady, the 2022 American Music Awards will air live from the Microsoft Theater at LA Live in Los Angeles on Sunday, November 20th at 8 pm EST/PST on ABC and stream the next day on Hulu.

International superstar Lionel Richie has an unparalleled ability to masterfully blend a variety of music, from pop to country. As a songwriter and performer, Richie has sold more than 125 million albums sold worldwide and has received numerous awards throughout his storied career including an Oscar, four Grammys, and a Golden Globe among other notable industry distinctions. As a performer, his incomparable music catalog has earned him 12 No. 1 hits and 13 Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, and led to collaborations with some of the industry’s iconic personalities, such as Kenny Rogers, Diana Ross and Barbra Streisand. Richie’s 12 No. 1 hits were released in 11 consecutive years, ranging from his No. 1 hit in 1977 with the Commodores, “Easy,” to a consecutive string of other No. 1 successes including “All Night Long (All Night),” “Say You” and “Dancing on the Ceiling.” Richie also penned the Kenny Rogers song “Lady,” which spent six weeks at No. 1.

Embarking on a new chapter in 1981, Richie launched his solo career with a multi-week No. 1 hit, “Truly,” and later his album Can’t Slow Down had five chart-topping singles including his memorable hit “All Night Long” and is on record as the biggest selling album in the history of Motown Records. In 1985, Richie co-wrote the global anthem “We Are the World” with Michael Jackson, recording with more than 45 artists surrounding the American Music Awards. The song spent four weeks as the No. 1 on the Hot 100 and charted around the world, helping to raise millions of dollars to support famine relief efforts in Africa and went on to win multiple Grammys. He took home the Academy Award® for “Best Song” in 1986, where he was in contention twice in the same category for his hit composition of “Say You, Say Me,” for the film “White Nights.” In 2016, Richie was named the MusiCares Person of the Year and was the recipient of the coveted Johnny Mercer Prize by the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2017, Richie received the Kennedy Center Honors Award and in 2022, Richie was awarded the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame over the weekend.

Richie sold out arenas worldwide on his All The Hits, All Night Long Tour and has headlined festivals including Bonnaroo, Outside Lands and Glastonbury. He launched his Las Vegas headlining residency show Lionel Richie – All the Hits in April 2016, and his subsequent 2019 album Live from Las Vegas hit No. 1 on the Billboard Artist 100 chart upon release. The album brought fans inside the spectacular musical journey of his brightest and best anthems that have defined his unparalleled career. Richie extended his Back to Las Vegas residency in 2022 at the Wynn Las Vegas’ Encore Theater with dozens of concerts, and will continue the highly successful residency into 2023. Richie serves as a judge on ABC’s American Idol and is currently filming his sixth season on the show.

The definition of an icon, Richie has won 17 AMAs over the course of his career, starting with the 1979 hit pop/rock single “Three Times a Lady” with the Commodores. Richie won again in 1980 with the Commodores for Soul/R&B Group before going on to receive the bulk of his awards for his solo career. He took home two awards in 1982 for “Endless Love,” two in 1983 for Pop/Rock Single (“Truly”) and Soul/R&B Male, and the award for Favorite Soul/R&B Single for “All Night Long (All Night)” in 1984. The following year, Richie – who hosted the 1985 show – had a record-breaking evening, winning six AMAs in one night, including Pop/Rock Male and multiple video awards for “Hello.” In 1987, he again took home Pop/Rock Male and earned four awards throughout the night. To this day, he holds the record for most music video AMAs with six wins and is among the most decorated AMA winners of all time as this year’s Icon Award brings his total to 18 awards.

As previously announced, the evening will feature can’t-miss performances and collaborations from Carrie Underwood, Imagine Dragons, J.I.D., P!NK, Tems, Wizkid and Yola. Additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks.

The AMAs represents the year’s top achievements in music determined by the fans, for the fans. Last year’s show stands as the most social telecast of 2021 with 46.5 million interactions, underscoring the role fans play in the annual event. A vibrant night of non-stop music, the AMAs features a powerful lineup featuring first-time collaborations and exclusive world premiere performances from music’s biggest names – from Pop to Rap, R&B to Country, Latin to K-Pop – and more, as well as memorable moments that live on in pop culture.

As the world’s largest fan-voted awards show, the AMAs will air globally across a footprint of linear and digital platforms in more than 120 countries and territories.

Reigning Favorite Male Latin Artist Bad Bunny is this year’s most-nominated artist with eight nods, including his first nomination for Artist of the Year. He could tie Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston for the most awards in a single year should he win in all eight categories. Bad Bunny is also up for Favorite Touring Artist, Favorite Music Video, Favorite Male Pop Artist, Favorite Pop Album, Favorite Male Latin Artist, Favorite Latin Album, and Favorite Latin Song.

Powerhouses Beyoncé and Taylor Swift are the most-nominated female artists with six nominations each and will face off in three categories: Artist of The Year, Favorite Female Pop Artist and Favorite Pop Album. Drake also earned six nods and is up for the evening’s top honor, Artist of the Year.

Fan voting is now open via VoteAMAs.com and Twitter in all award categories.

As the world’s largest fan-voted awards show, the AMAs will air globally across a footprint of linear and digital platforms in more than 120 countries and territories.

The 2022 American Music Awards winners are voted entirely by fans. Nominees are based on key fan interactions – as reflected on the Billboard charts – including streaming, album and song sales, radio airplay, and tour grosses. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and its data partner Luminate, and cover the eligibility period of September 24, 2021, through September 22, 2022.

Buddy Iahn
Buddy Iahn

Buddy Iahn founded The Music Universe when he decided to juxtapose his love of web design and music. As a lifelong drummer, he decided to take a hiatus from playing music to report it. The website began as a fun project in 2013 to one of the top independent news sites. Email: info@themusicuniverse.com