Jade Carter
Lionel Richie shares update on daughter Sofia Richie’s baby Henry
Lionel Richie gives an update on the newest member of his family, daughter Sofia Richie Grainge and Elliot Grainge’s baby boy Henry.
“Pop pop” Lionel Richie is proud to see his family growing with daughter Sofia Richie Grainge‘s newborn son.
“The beautiful part about it is that the family keeps growing, and my pride keeps popping out of my chest,” he told 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 child, Henry Cecil Grainge, on March 18. They’re also parents to Henry’s older sister, Eloise Samantha Grainge, who turns 2 on May 20.
Lionel Richie now has four grandchildren, including eldest daughter Nicole Richie‘s daughter Harlow Madden and son Sparrow Madden. Richie Grainge, Lionel Richie’s youngest child with ex-wife Diane Alexander, also has an older brother, Miles Richie.
But in his eighth year as an “Idol” judge, Lionel Richie is starting to feel less like a mentor and more like a patriarch of the ever-growing family. Currently in its 24th season, “American Idol” casts singers who are between 15 and 29 years old at 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 said. “Isn’t that funny? I came here thinking I’d be Mr. Richie. Now I’m pop pop on ‘American Idol.'”
Richie, formerly 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 often private about his family, in a rare moment opened up about his late father during the “Idol” 2026 auditions.
Touched by current Top 14 contestant Chris Tungseth‘s original song about losing his mother, 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 said, “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 in the U.S. Army during World War II, died in 1990 at age 75.
