Lionel Richie is famous for many things. He started with the band the Commodores in the 1970s and went on to make hit songs like “Hello” and “All Night Long.” More recently, he’s been a judge on “American Idol” since the show came back in 2018. Besides his music career, he’s also known as the adoptive father of Nicole Richie, who is a reality star, actor, rapper, and socialite.
Nicole Richie has created a successful brand for herself as a well-known celebrity, but she faced a lot of challenges in the 2000s. After starring in “The Simple Life” with her childhood best friend Paris Hilton, she became very famous just as pop culture started being really harsh to young women. She was constantly followed by paparazzi and made fun of by tabloids. People talked endlessly about her weight, and her legal troubles were discussed on every late-night show. Even though she had the privilege of being the daughter of a famous musician, Nicole’s story is one of overcoming significant challenges and becoming a well-adjusted person. Keep reading to learn more about the difficult experiences of Lionel Richie’s daughter, Nicole.
Nicole Richie’s adoption story
In the early 1980s, Lionel Richie went to a Prince concert. What really caught his attention wasn’t Prince himself but a 2-year-old girl on stage playing the tambourine. Her name was Nicole, and she was the daughter of two band members. After the concert, Lionel met her backstage, and a few weeks later, he visited her home with Sheila E., who was Nicole’s aunt. On an episode of “Talk to Me,” he talked about how they began to see the struggles happening in Nicole’s life. They were worried because it seemed like her family couldn’t take care of her properly. He said, “The situation with you wasn’t getting any better. It was actually getting worse,” and noted that her family situation was falling apart.
The singer of “Endless Love” decided to adopt Nicole, and she became known as Nicole Richie. While her life was difficult before Lionel stepped in to help her, the adoption also meant she had to say goodbye to people from her early childhood. In her memoir “The Beat of My Own Drum,” Sheila E. talked about the adoption as a sad moment. She wrote, “The heartbreaking part is that once Nicole Escovedo legally became Nicole Richie, it felt like we lost her. We all lost her.”
Nicole Richie dabbled in illegal substances
Growing up in Los Angeles as the daughter of a very famous musician, Nicole Richie became a hard-partying teenager surrounded by all kinds of temptations. In an interview with Diane Sawyer on “20/20,” she said, “I got so much so fast that nothing really excited me anymore.” She explained that she started creating drama in a dangerous way because she was bored and had seen it all. For Nicole, this led to trying illegal drugs. She started with cocaine and then moved on to heroin. She realized, “I have to get off drugs. This isn’t the life … this was heroin,” and knew she needed to make a change.
Richie went to rehab for her heroin addiction in 2003. Thankfully, it seems to have worked, and she has stayed sober since then. In an interview with Vanity Fair about changing her life, Richie shared how bad things had become. She said, “There were times when my mom would come home and scream at me about something, and I literally didn’t care about anything. It was like watching a really dramatic movie with the volume turned down. I thought I was getting away with everything.”
But she wasn’t, and rehab helped her rethink her life. She said, “I want to be able to handle whatever comes my way and not break down every time tough things happen because tough things will always come.”
If you or someone you know needs help with addiction, support is available. You can visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
Tabloids ran wild with stories of Nicole Richie having an eating disorder
At the height of her fame from “The Simple Life,” Nicole Richie faced rumors that she had an eating disorder. For instance, in 2006, Star Magazine published a headline that said, “From sex kitten to scary skinny!” No matter how much Richie tried to deny it, the media kept bringing it up. During an interview with Diane Sawyer for ABC News, Richie insisted, “I do not have an eating disorder. I’ve never had an eating disorder, ever. It’s anxiety, it’s stress, it’s just — it’s just not being careful.”
Even though she was famous from reality TV, Richie didn’t want to be seen as a role model for young women. However, after years in the spotlight, she realized she had a responsibility to think about what she represented. She told Vanity Fair, “I know I’m too thin right now, so I wouldn’t want any young girl looking at me and saying, ‘That’s what I want to look like.’ I do know that they will, which is another reason I really do need to do something about it.”
To help her gain weight, Richie worked with doctors and nutritionists. That year, she also had her first child, which made a difference. She told ABC News, “I eat all the time, especially now. I’m constantly hungry. I’m eating at least every hour.”
She had a highly-publicized falling out with BFF Paris Hilton
“The Simple Life” brought a lot of attention to Nicole Richie and her friendship with Paris Hilton while Richie was trying to stay sober from her drug addiction. The pressures of sudden fame eventually caused problems between the two friends, but details about what actually happened are not very clear.
Rumors spread that Richie hosted a “Saturday Night Live” watch party for Hilton’s appearance but ended up showing the guests Hilton’s famous sex tape instead. In response, Hilton told People, “It’s no big secret that Nicole and I are no longer friends. Nicole knows what she did, and that’s all I’m ever going to say about it.”
In the following years, there were many passive-aggressive comments made in the media between Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton, who used to be very close friends. They even filmed “The Simple Life” separately because they didn’t want to be on set at the same time. Richie later denied the rumors about hosting a watch party for Hilton’s sex tape in an interview with Vanity Fair. She said, “That was completely made up. A, I don’t watch porn, and B, I don’t want to see someone I’ve known forever having sex. I mean, that’s gross!” Instead, she explained, “I just decided I didn’t want to be her friend anymore.”
Although the two reportedly made up after “The Simple Life,” they kept their renewed friendship private. Unfortunately, this meant Hilton missed Richie’s wedding to Good Charlotte singer Joel Madden. A source told Us Weekly, “Nicole knew very well that having Paris involved would have inevitably turned a special night into being about their friendship.”
Nicole Richie had several major run-ins with the law
During her wild-child years, Nicole Richie had several run-ins with the law. Her first arrest was for having heroin, which happened even before “The Simple Life” was on TV. A few years later, she was arrested for assault. She told Vanity Fair, “A guy said I stabbed him in the eye with a glass at Bungalow 8. I had stolen my mom’s credit cards and run away from home. In my mind, it was great.”
Her most well-known arrest happened in 2006 when she was caught driving under the influence (DUI) after going the wrong way on a California freeway. During the trial, Los Angeles County Commissioner Steven Lubell warned her, “Someone could’ve gotten killed. You need to understand that driving under the influence is extremely dangerous.”
In an appearance on “The Late Show with David Letterman,” Richie said she was nervous about her sentencing. She mentioned, “I’m just keeping my fingers crossed, and, you know, of course, I’m scared also, but I’m willing to face whatever consequences come my way, and I take responsibility for what I’ve done.” Ultimately, she was sentenced to four days in prison, but because of overcrowding, she was released after just 82 minutes. The consequences of this incident lasted for years, as her probation was extended because she didn’t complete her required community service. Finally, in 2010, everything was resolved.
She was diagnosed with hypoglycemia
When Nicole Richie went for treatment in 2006 to help her gain weight, her doctors talked to Vanity Fair about what they were looking into. Dr. Jeffrey Wilkins, a psychiatrist at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, said, “We’re working on a plan to help her eat more calories, and we’ll see if it works. We’re all worried, and she’s worried too, but it will either improve or it won’t.” He added, “If it’s not anorexia, she should be able to gain weight. If it turns out to be anorexia, we’ll help her with that. I think she’s ready to face this issue.”
The following year, Nicole Richie made headlines again when she was hospitalized for dehydration while filming “The Simple Life.” A representative told E! News, “Nicole is home resting and will return to work this evening. We are proud of the weight that Nicole is gaining and her focus on her health.”
Later that year, Richie shared a diagnosis that explained her health problems. Her publicist told People, “In her ongoing effort to focus on her well-being, Nicole has recently been diagnosed with hypoglycemia.” Hypoglycemia means she has low blood sugar. According to her publicist, “She is taking steps to manage it.”
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