Lionel Richie has revealed that he once gave Michael Jackson a rather savage nickname — and it all stemmed from the pop legend’s hygiene habits.
In his debut memoir Truly, the 76-year-old All Night Long singer opens up with candid stories about his late friend, the King of Pop.
Richie recalls how close Jackson was to his family — especially his siblings and mother — but notes that once Michael embarked on his solo career, creating massive albums, movies, and music videos, “he was fully in command of his own ship.”
According to Richie, Jackson’s daily life was nothing short of eccentric. He described the pop icon as “an absent-minded professor, yet still a kid at heart.”
It was this mix of childlike quirks and a noticeable shortage of clean clothes that led Richie to give him a rather unflattering nickname.
That nickname was “Smelly.”
And it turns out, Richie wasn’t the only one who called him that — legendary producer Quincy Jones also frequently teased Jackson with the same moniker.
“Michael would laugh about it too,” Richie recalled, “realizing he’d completely forgotten to change or wash his clothes for a few days.” He added with a smile, “We all have our quirks.”
The American Idol judge went on to suggest that Jackson’s demanding lifestyle was partly to blame — with endless tours, video shoots, and intense dance rehearsals, the superstar barely had time for ordinary tasks like shopping or doing laundry.
“He was either on tour, dressed in the elaborate costumes his stylists made for him, or in pajama bottoms and slippers at the studio,” Richie wrote.
“At home, he preferred something loose and comfortable so he could rehearse his dance moves and play with his collection of pets.”
Richie added that when Jackson came over to visit, he’d usually just show up wearing whatever happened to be lying around.
“The jeans were either slipping off him or so short they barely qualified as jeans — and, well, they smelled,” Richie recalled.
On one occasion, Richie even confronted Jackson about his questionable pants. The pop star simply laughed and said, “Lionel, I was walking past a store in the Valley when the owner came out and gave me a free pair.”
But for Jackson, skipping laundry wasn’t just about convenience — it also came with real risk.
In his memoir, Richie revealed that Jackson steered clear of dry cleaners because his clothes had a tendency to vanish — often taken as souvenirs.
“Everybody kept something,” Richie explained, which is why the pop icon simply chose to keep wearing the same outfits until they were completely worn out.
This isn’t the first time the Thriller legend’s hygiene has raised eyebrows. In 2014, five of Jackson’s former housekeepers claimed he “lived in a house of filth and urinated on the floor,” with one even alleging that he’d jokingly threaten staff with “doo-doo snowballs.”
“Michael would sometimes run around where the animals were, track poop through the house, and think nothing of it,” one source said at the time.
