Lionel Richie Reveals Michael Jackson’s Nickname Was ‘Smelly’ Due to Bad Hygiene, ‘Ratty Jeans’

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Michael Jackson may have been known as the King of Pop, but his friends had another name for him, according to Lionel Richie. 

In the 76-year-old Commodores frontman’s new memoir, Truly, he detailed how Jackson had such bad hygiene that their late friend Quincy Jones nicknamed him “Smelly,” according to People.

“Michael would laugh too, realizing that he was oblivious to the fact that he hadn’t changed or washed his clothes for a couple of days or so,” Richie wrote, per People. “We all have our quirks.”

“Whenever Michael came to visit me, he was wearing whatever — jeans and a t-shirt,” Richie shared. “And the jeans were either falling off him or too short to even be jeans and, well, smelly.”

The American Idol judge recalled how, when he asked the “Thriller” singer about his bottoms, he told him, “‘Lionel, I walked by a store in the Valley. The owner came out and gave me a free pair.’”

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According to People, Richie explained that because of the amount of travel the musician was doing, he couldn’t rely on his clothes getting back to him if he sent them for cleaning.

“Everybody kept something for a souvenir,” Richie penned. “He just got into the habit of wearing the same pants until they were unwearable.”

The “Hello” hitmaker further recounted how he once helped Jackson clean himself up, giving him a new pair of jeans and underwear — and was simultaneously left with the superstar’s old belongings.

“I drove him home, on his back streets, and he was sweet and thankful,” Richie wrote. “As soon as I walked back into my house, I passed by the living room and noticed that there on the carpet was the pair of Michael Jackson’s underwear and his old ratty jeans. Just lying there like roadkill. What do I do but laugh? MJ was here.”