The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, the largest literary festival in the United States, returned to the University of Southern California campus on April 18 and 19. It was a two-day celebration of books, storytelling and cultural dialogue.
The festival brought together more than 550 writers, thinkers and cultural figures, spanning literature, entertainment, journalism, politics and academia. Across the USC campus, attendees could choose from 200+ events, including author panels, book signings, live performances and interactive exhibits.
This year’s edition leaned heavily into cross-disciplinary storytelling, reflecting how literature now overlaps with celebrity, journalism and digital media. One of the most popular panels was the one featuring legendary singer-songwriter Lionel Richie, moderated by Los Angeles Times pop music critic Mikael Wood.
Richie spoke at the Bovard Auditorium at 2:30pm on Sunday, April 19. His appearance felt less like a standard author talk and more like a masterclass in memory, mythmaking and the elasticity of pop stardom. The discussion was centered on Richie’s memoir Truly, but it frequently drifted into performance, his childhood, stardom and cultural reflection.
From the very beginning, Richie resisted the conventions of a literary panel. He approached storytelling with the instincts of a performer rather than a writer, pausing for effect, delivering punchlines with impeccable timing and occasionally slipping into the cadence of his own lyrics. The crowd responded accordingly: not with the polite murmurs typical of book festivals, but with bursts of recognition and laughter that felt closer to a concert audience.
Truly is Richie’s recent memoir exploring his upbringing in Alabama and rise through the Commodores to solo superstardom.
Going back to his childhood, he mentioned that he was a shy kid. He spoke candidly about suffering from ADHD and how that type of neurodivergence has a name now.
“Back when I was growing up, it was called slow learner, which does not help your ego at all,” Richie said.
Imposter syndrome was something that bothered Richie throughout the 80s, as he was discovering himself at the same time the whole world was. Nevertheless, he opined that being nervous was actually being present in the moment, and that’s totally fine. There would be massive panic attacks in the middle of the most mundane moments, but it has been decades since he last felt it. He gradually got used to it after learning that a lot of artists go through it.
“The most important thing for me is that I had to show up,” Richie said.
Wood played an essential role in grounding the conversation. His questions steered Richie toward specificity: pressing on moments of doubt, artistic transition and the mechanics of songwriting. At one point, Wood asked Richie about a visit to the Polo Lounge in The Beverly Hills hotel, a popular celebrity hotspot during Richie’s heyday in the industry. The discussion moved towards hierarchy and the different levels of fame. Richie remembered that to even enter the lounge, one had to look like a star.
“You wanted to be like the folks in that room. So instead of trying to be somebody uniquely different, you wanted to be like them,” Richie said.
The singer suggested that the lounge is different now, because there are tourists filming and taking photographs inside most of the time. It has become more accessible, with the rules becoming less strict.
It was during this discussion about the struggle to fit in, when Richie went back to his childhood, family and growing up inside a university campus during a time of segregation in Tuskegee, Alabama.
Richie grew up listening to stories of Black men having planes and being able to fly, but not vote. In the 1940s, Tuskegee University was the training ground for the Tuskegee Airmen, the first Black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps. Theodore Roosevelt and his wife, Eleanor, visited in 1941 and it was here that Charles Alfred Anderson, known today as “The Father of Black Aviation,” flew them over Alabama skies for over an hour.
Richie’s grandparents lived on that campus, so their home was physically surrounded by aviation activities. Much later in life, he realized that his family lived through intense historic moments, and still has the strength to crack jokes.
La Shawn Penson (59), who also lived through segregation herself, and is originally from Nebraska, found Richie’s historical references the most exciting part of the panel.
“All the historical facts he spoke about, that shaped his life, was amazing,” Penson said.
Adelaide Mary Brown, Richie’s grandmother who lived to be 103 years old, was a classically trained pianist who first introduced Richie to piano. Famous educator and author of that time from Tuskegee University, Booker T Washington, had gifted her the home where she married Richie’s grandfather and continued to live. Richie also spent his childhood years in the same home.
Richie clarified that he did not grow up with Washington, but always heard of his stories from his grandmother, who played a pivotal role in shaping his personality. He wanted to live up to his grandmother’s expectations, who would motivate him to overcome all obstacles. She reminded him that failure is not an option and he had a mission to fulfill in his life.
“Grandmother was the standard of dignity, class, taste, and style,” Richie said.
Janel Alexander-O’Connor (62), who came to the Festival of Books from Illinois only to see Richie, shared that she attended the Eliza Kelly Elementary School in Tuskegee, where Richie’s mother served as the principal.
“The highlight for me was the stories Lionel told about everything through his parents and grandmother,” said Alexander-O’Connor. “All of these people have a big impact on who he is today and how he learned to be the person he is.”
Talking about his family later in life, Richie shared that even though he tried to spend as much time with them as possible, he had to miss many major events, like Homecomings, Christmas and Thanksgiving.
“What comes with success is sacrifice,” Richie said. He continued that after a certain point, one realizes that there are only so many sacrifices one can make before they realize they don’t want it anymore.
Richie shared that he is still juggling family, friends and his stardom, but that is what paved the way to the heart of his memoir.
“Life is not an easy journey. Every single day you have to reinvent yourself,” he said.
When the panel discussion came to an end, fans waited outside the gate to catch a glimpse of the legend. Sheryll Tolbert, an artist from Long Beach who painted a portrait of Richie sat outside the auditorium. She was happy that Richie acknowledged her efforts while leaving the campus.
“When he was coming out in the SUV, I raised it up, he saw it and smiled,” Tolbert said.
The panel asserted that Truly is a deeply personal memoir which traces Richie’s journey from a childhood in Alabama to becoming one of the most recognizable voices in global pop music, reflecting on identity, resilience and reinvention.
“This book is a discovery of the little kid who did not have this screaming life of success,” said Richie.“But the kid who overcame his own fears to be where I am today.”