Lionel Richie required assistance during his concert in St. Louis, Missouri, on Saturday before he was hospitalized. While performing his final song, "All Night Long," at the Muny Amphitheater, the 77-year-old singer motioned for a chair to be brought onstage, which he then used for the remainder of his performance.
During the concert, Richie addressed the audience about his health, mentioning dehydration and a previous hospitalization in June. "Some things have been happening on this tour that kind of shook me up a little bit, because I couldn’t figure out what the hell was going on," he told the crowd. "I went back to the doctor, and he said, ‘You are suffering from dehydration.’"
Richie also shared that he was drinking electrolytes onstage, remarking, "I’m telling you, this stuff is nasty — but it works." He advised the audience, "Just drink your electrolytes and you too can be like me."
Following the concert, Richie was admitted to a local hospital's intensive care unit for testing. According to TMZ, doctors are investigating slight dehydration as the potential cause of his illness.
This incident follows a previous health scare in June when Richie abruptly ended a concert early in St. Paul, Minnesota, after falling ill onstage. Videos from that show depicted him sitting down several times while performing "Dancing on the Ceiling" and telling the crowd, "When you’re feeling dizzy, sit your ass down." He subsequently canceled two other shows in Chicago and Columbus, Ohio.
Richie had reassured fans on Instagram on July 4, stating, "I’m doing well, and I’m grateful for all of you." Later, during a July 11 performance at Madison Square Garden in New York City, he drank electrolytes and told the audience, "They assured me this electrolyte is gonna last all the way through the show."