Formerly the lead vocalist of The Commodores, Richie began a solo career in the early 1980s and has released over 40 singles, five of which became number-one hits on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Richie's first three studio albums have all been certified "Multi-Platinum" by the Recording Industry Association of America.

His second album, Can't Slow Down, is his most successful, being certified 10× Platinum (i.e. Diamond) in the US.

The album spent 59 consecutive weeks inside the Billboard Top 10 (including the entire year of 1984) and a total of 160 weeks (over three years) on the Billboard 200 chart.

It became the third best-selling album of 1984, and eventually sold over 20 million copies worldwide.