Lionel Richie praises Nicole

Saturday, 14 March 2009

Lionel Richie thinks his daughter Nicole is the "perfect mother".

The 'Dancing on the Ceiling' singer is proud of the 'Simple Life' star because she overcame her addiction to cocaine and heroin, settled down, and started a family.

He said: "I watched guys die through drugs. I saw the novelty of it but I didn't like the idea of having five hit records, doing some coke, doing heroin then dying. There was only one way you ever did drugs and got through it and that was rehab.

"Even when my daughter Nicole came home and said, 'Dad, I messed up', because I'd seen it all, I could give her advice and that's why she came through it and is so over it. Look at her now, the perfect mother."

Nicole - who has a 14-month-old daughter, Harlow, with her partner Joel Madden, and is pregnant again - has been in rehab twice, once in 2003 and again in 2007.

Lionel also revealed his secret strategy for making younger hip-hop artists comfortable around him.

The 59-year-old singer - who collaborated with Akon, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent on his new album 'Just Go' - says he tries to "get down" like a "gangsta".

He said: "When I meet people like Snoop or 50 Cent, I practice my 'gangsta walk' before I meet them so I can 'get down' with them.

"I'll say 'Yo' and then instead of being these streetwise rappers they'll crumble and say, 'Good day Mr. Richie'. It's so funny."