SANTA MONICA – November 4, 2021 – Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG), a leading, global music publisher, today announced that Grammy Award-winning recording artist and songwriter Lionel Richie has signed an exclusive, global publishing agreement. The deal includes songs written throughout Richie’s solo career including super hits “Hello,” “Lady,” “Dancing on the Ceiling,” “All Night Long,” and numerous others.

With more than 125 million albums sold worldwide, six Grammy Awards, an Oscar and a Golden Globe, Richie (Capitol Records) is an international icon whose discography is a defining part of pop music history. He is one of the only songwriters in history to have #1 records for eleven consecutive years, as well as one of only two songwriters to solely write eight #1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. In addition to Richie’s extensive catalog of mega-hits like “Penny Lover,” Truly,” “Say You, Say Me” and “Ballerina Girl,” he co-wrote “We Are the World,” one of the most important and timeless pop songs in history.

Jody Gerson, Chairman and CEO of UMPG, said: “I am thrilled that Lionel Richie has chosen UMPG to take care of his song catalogue. I have known Lionel personally for years and have always wanted to be his publisher. I am so happy the day has finally come. We will be the best publisher Lionel has ever had. My teams around the world couldn’t be more excited to work with his illustrious catalogue of hits, spanning many, many decades.”

Richie said: “Having partnered with Universal Music as recording artist for almost my entire career, joining the UMPG family as a songwriter feels like coming home. With their outstanding global team, I know my songs are in the best hands and I’m excited for what we can accomplish together.”