Lionel Richie reveals he wrote Kenny Rogers’ “Lady” in the bathroom
Written by ABC AUDIO on March 31, 2023
Lionel Richie wrote Kenny Rogers‘ classic song “Lady,” and he just revealed on The Drew Barrymore Show that he finished the tune in a very unlikely place — the bathroom.
“I’m working with Kenny Rogers — this is back in the day — and so Kenny calls and says, ‘I want you to write a song for me,'” Richie shared on the show. “And, of course, I wrote ‘Lady.'”
Richie explains that at Kenny’s request he also prepared a second song, “Goin’ Back to Alabama,” but midway through writing it, Rogers decided he wanted to record “Lady” first.
“Now, what he didn’t know was I only had written the first verse of ‘Lady,’” Richie revealed. “So, I said, ‘Excuse me for a minute. Let me, uh, go to the bathroom.’ I’m sitting in the stall writing the second verse to ‘Lady.'”
Barrymore couldn’t believe Richie was able to finish the classic tune in such a short period of time, but he noted, “You will do some amazing things when you’re scared to death.” He added, “The idea of telling Mr. Rogers, ‘I don’t have the second verse,’ was not going to happen in my lifetime.”
“Lady,” released in 1980, became a number one hit for Rogers, spending six weeks on top of the chart. As for “Goin’ Back to Alabama,” Rogers did eventually record it for his 1981 album, Share Your Love.
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