Intruder Breaks Into Lionel Richie’s Home While He Was Inside
Police received a call from Richie’s home shortly after midnight.
Lionel Richie; Photo by Disney/Stewart Cook
Four-time GRAMMY winner and longtime American Idol judge Lionel Richie faced a frightening situation overnight when an intruder broke into his Beverly Hills home just after midnight.
According to NBC Los Angeles, Beverly Hills police received a call from Richie’s home shortly after midnight. Officers quickly responded, searched the area, and located a man who was later taken into custody.
The suspect, identified as 38-year-old John Bond, was arrested on suspicion of residential burglary. Police say Richie’s security system alerted him to the intruder, who appeared startled by the alarm and fled the scene.
Richie’s team told NBC4 that the 76-year-old singer is grateful for the police department’s quick response and happy to know that no one was injured.
Authorities confirmed that nothing was taken from the home.
The news comes just hours after Richie was confirmed to return to American Idol, alongside Luke Bryan and Carrie Underwood.
Richie has been a judge since 2018 when the show moved to ABC.
Earlier this year, during the American Idol Season 23 grand finale, the judges teamed up to perform Richie’s iconic hit, “Stuck On You,” on the American Idol stage.
The beloved track was Richie’s debut country single, released in June 1984. It was written solely by Lionel Richie and climbed all the way to No.24 on the country charts.
While Richie is best known for his work as a R&B/Pop/Soul singer, he does have deep country roots. In early 2012, the Alabama native teamed up with a slew of country music’s biggest stars to release Tuskegee, an album that included reinterpretations of some of his biggest hits with country artists. He recreated “Stuck On You” with Darius Rucker, and teamed up with Jason Aldean on “Say You, Say Me,” Kenny Chesney on “My Love,” Shania Twain on “Endless Love,” Willie Nelson on “Easy,” and more.
He also famously wrote “Lady,” a song recorded by country music icon Kenny Rogers. Rogers took it up the charts around the world, and the pair re-recorded it as a duet on Tuskegee.
Lauren Jo Black, a University of Central Florida graduate, has immersed herself in the world of country music for over 15 years. In 2008, she co-founded CountryMusicIsLove, eventually selling it to a major record label in 2015. Following the rebranding of the website to Sounds Like Nashville, Black served as Editor-in-Chief for two and a half years. Currently, she assumes the role of Editor-in-Chief at Country Now and oversees Country Now’s content and digital footprint. Her extensive experience also encompasses her previous role as a Country Music Expert Writer for Answers.com and her work being featured on Forbes.com. She’s been spotlighted among Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. Black also spent time in front of the camera as host of Country Now Live, which brought live music directly to fans in 2021 when the majority of concerts were halted due to the pandemic. During this time, she hosted 24 weeks of live concerts via Country Now Live on Twitch with special guests such as Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Jordan Davis, Brett Young, and Jon Pardi. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of conducting interviews with some of the industry’s most prominent stars, including Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, and many others. Lauren Jo Black is a longtime member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.
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