Home · Songs · Lionel Richie · Hello
From album
Can’t Slow Down
Lionel Richie · 1983 · Track 8
Details
TonalidadAm
Compás4/4
Tempo62 BPM
Duración4:11
ÁlbumCan’t Slow Down
Año1983
ISRCUSMO18390012
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The story behind
When you start playing *Hello*, you encounter a melody that grabs you from the first moment. The way the lyrics unfold, with that initial question, "Hello, is it me you're looking for?", invites you to imagine a story. Producer James Anthony Carmichael was at Lionel Richie's house for a songwriting session, and upon hearing that phrase, encouraged him to continue. At first, Richie thought it was a bit cheesy, but as he completed the verse, the idea completely captivated him. The harmonic structure of the verses, moving between Am9, Cmaj7/G, Fmaj7, and C6/G, along with the use of a Neapolitan chord (Bb) in the chorus, gives the song a richness that goes beyond expectations.
This piece, which is part of the album Can't Slow Down, was released in 1984 and quickly climbed to the top of the charts. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, the Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart, and also the Billboard Hot Black Singles Chart in the spring of that year. Furthermore, it remained at the top of the UK Singles Chart for six weeks. The music video, directed by Bob Giraldi, features Richie as a theater teacher who develops an affection for a blind student, discovering that the feeling is mutual when she sculpts his face in clay. The song has been compared in its theme and video to the song *Hello* by British singer Adele. In 2015, a comedic duet version by Richie and Jimmy Fallon went viral on the internet.
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