Lionel Richie shares health update after recent hospitalizations - The Independent

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Lionel Richie has taken the stage in Las Vegas after suffering a series of health issues in recent months.

The “All Night Long” singer’s residency, Lionel Richie–King of Hearts, resumed Wednesday night at The Wynn Las Vegas. Richie is slated for two more performances there this week.

Taking the stage Wednesday, the 77-year-old declared to the cheering crowd in video shared by TMZ: “I’m back!”

“I don’t know where I was, but I’m back,” he continued. “I’m doing just fine, thank you all so much for caring about me.”

“So I want to make it a tribute tonight to me!” Richie said as the crowd continued to applaud. “I better make a tribute to myself before somebody else has at it.”

Richie’s performance follows a series of hospitalizations in recent months that forced him to cancel three concerts with Earth, Wind & Fire. The shows were scheduled for late September and early October in San Francisco, Chicago, and Columbus, Ohio.

At the time of the cancelation, Richie’s representative told The Independent: “Lionel underwent a common procedure for Atrial fibrillation (AFib). The doctor said everything went perfectly. Lionel is doing great but will take some time off and will be back on stage soon.”

AFib is the most common irregular heart rhythm. Although it is not life-threatening on its own, the disorder can lead to health complications. Symptoms include fatigue, dizziness, heart palpitations and shortness of breath.

Richie was previously hospitalized for issues with his heart in June and again in August, when the American Idol judge spent three days in the hospital after he struggled to finish his August 29 concert in St. Louis, Missouri.

Richie became visibly winded on stage, and videos from the end of the concert showed him asking for a chair while performing his last song of the night, “All Night Long.” He then left the show and checked himself into the hospital, winding up in the ICU.

Prior to that, the performer, who rose to fame with The Commodores, had a hospital visit after experiencing a dizzy spell during the first show of his tour in St. Paul, Minnesota, on June 24.

During his performance of “Dancing on the Ceiling,” Richie joked that he had never sung that song while seated, the Minnesota Star Tribune reported at the time.

“Now, what I have learned about my years of being in the business: when you are feeling dizzy, sit your ass down,” he joked on stage. “And when you are feeling strange about yourself, sit your ass down.”

He continued: “Now I want you to know that that is the first time in the history of ‘Dancing on the Ceiling’ I’ve done it sitting down,” he continued to audience laughter and cheers. “That’s a bad sign! That’s a bad sign, y’all.”

Richie is slated to perform two more concerts in Vegas this week, followed by a December 19 show in São Paulo, Brazil. In January, he’ll play two more Vegas shows before heading to Thackerville, Oklahoma, at the end of the month.