March 31, 2026, 4:41 p.m. ET
“Pop pop” Lionel Richie is proud to see his household rising with daughter Sofia Richie Grainge‘s new child son.
“The beautiful part about it is that the family keeps growing, and my pride keeps popping out of my chest,” he instructed USA TODAY after taping “American Idol” on March 30. “It’s wonderful. Everyone’s happy, and that’s the part I love the most, watching everyone blossom.”
Richie Grainge, 27, gave birth to her and Elliot Grainge’s second youngster, Henry Cecil Grainge, on March 18. They’re additionally dad and mom to Henry’s older sister, Eloise Samantha Grainge, who turns 2 on May 20.
Lionel Richie now has 4 grandchildren, together with eldest daughter Nicole Richie‘s daughter Harlow Madden and son Sparrow Madden. Richie Grainge, Lionel Richie’s youngest youngster with ex-wife Diane Alexander, additionally has an older brother, Miles Richie.
But in his eighth yr as an “Idol” choose, Lionel Richie is beginning to really feel much less like a mentor and extra like a patriarch of the ever-growing household. Currently in its twenty fourth season, “American Idol” casts singers who’re between 15 and 29 years outdated on the time of their audition, and the Top 14 contestants were revealed March 30.
“Pop pop is out there again. I’m pop pop everywhere,” the 76-year-old stated. “Isn’t that funny? I came here thinking I’d be Mr. Richie. Now I’m pop pop on ‘American Idol.'”
Richie, previously of the Commodores, is an Oscar-, Grammy- and Golden Globe-winning musician who was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.
Richie, who is usually personal about his household, in a uncommon second opened up about his late father through the “Idol” 2026 auditions.
Touched by present Top 14 contestant Chris Tungseth‘s unique track about dropping his mom, Richie shared, “There was a point in my life where I thought, ‘My dad’s dying and my life’s falling apart.'”
He continued, “There was a little aide over in the corner of the hospital. I was talking to my dad; he was in and out of a coma. [The aide] said, ‘You’re very lucky. And I look at him and said, ‘What are you talking about? He’s in a coma.'”
The aide stated, “I was just thinking I wish I had a dad to love as much as you have.”
Richie’s father, Lionel Brockman Richie Sr., who served as a First Lieutenant within the U.S. Army throughout World War II, died in 1990 at age 75.
