Smokey Robinson gets mistaken for Lionel Richie so often that he practically impersonated the fellow soul vocalist.
Robinson, 85, was a guest on Wednesday night’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live, and around the 3-minute mark, he detailed how he reacted when someone once confused him for Richie, 75.
Robinson said he and the “Dancing on the Ceiling” singer have been friends “forever” and “tease” each other about being doppelgängers.
“One morning I’m in the airport and I think I’m being really incognito because I got on these sunglasses i’m scooted down like this and I’m reading a book,” Richie told Kimmel.
But the Motown legend noticed a couple nearby who seemed to debate whether they knew who he was.
“So they finally come over to me, he says, ‘Hey man, I’ve got all your music. I’ve got everything you’ve ever done,'” Robinson recalled. “I love you so much. I can’t believe that this is you sitting here, but I want you to meet my girlfriend, man, so I want you to sign something for her. Would you sign ‘Love to Sarah from Lionel Richie?'”
But Robinson gladly signed the autograph in his friend’s name, a story that Richie’s probably heard before. The singer-songwriter previously spoke on being mistaken for Richie when presenting him with the AMA Icon Award at the 2022 American Music Awards.
“People have come to me many times and said, ‘Ooh, I love your music! I’ve got everything you’ve ever made! Would you sign this for me, Lionel?’ So when they say that to me, I do. I sign, ‘Much love, Lionel Richie,'” Robinson said in the clip below. “And he has done the same… Anyway, he’s my brother and no matter who you think we are.”
