Nile Rogers of Chic Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson
This sit-down with my old friend, multiple Grammy Winner, Rock & Roll Hall Inductee, Songwriters Hall of Fame Inductee, composer, producer, arranger, and guitarist, Nile Rogers, is SOLID GOLD… more like triple platinum. Even though we never exchanged more than a few words in the handful of times he graced my jams back in the day, there was always DHM (deep hidden meaning), as there always is with Nile. This day, we got to that and so much more. STORIES! Oh my lord, No one tells ‘em like Nile. Case in point, his tome, Le Freak, may be the greatest memoir I’ve read. I could not put the thing down. When was the last time I read a book cover to cover in less than 24 hours? A rare score on Amazon these days, Nile’s assured he’ll be updating and republishing. It’s a MUST-read for music fans, flower children, and anyone who loves to sink their teeth into a great story, well-told.
Nile covered his very humble early days, his barely older than him mother, the drugs, the bi-coastal extended family, the moves, the schools, early influences from Coltrane to The Beatles, flute to clarinet to guitar… how Bernard Edwards got him to the Hitmaker Strat and chucking, which has become synonymous with Nile’s style. We talked the DHM, the breakdown, the Chic magic as well as the music during and since… producing the top of the top for Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, Madonna, David Bowie, Duran Duran, still winning Grammys and kicking it with Daft Punk, Beyonce, and Cold Play, to name but a few, 750 MILLION albums worth. Say what?
We got the sweetest stories about Michael Jackson… a funny with Keith Richards, a Grace Jones impression, and a scary story about Nile’s coke psychosis leading to him bottoming out and getting clean and sober. 31 years worth and counting…
That Nile was able to do all that he’s done, and it’s Herculean - aside from the massive number of hits, the films he’s scored, the shows he’s played, there’s the We Are Family Foundation, Chairing the Songwriters Hall of Fame, receiving the 2024 World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award for his extraordinary efforts to make the world a more peaceful, equal, and inclusive place… Nile is a humanist, a gentle soul with a heart of platinum like the records that line his walls.
I’ve always admired, respected, and adored Nile. After reading Le Freak, and spending this time with him, I cherish him all the more. What a man, what a man, what a mighty fine man!
Nile Rogers of Chic Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson
Wednesday, 4/2/25, 11AM PT, 2 PM ET
Streamed Live on my Facebook and on my YouTube
FB Replay here:
https://bit.ly/4cmPP2u
YouTube replay here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q875x2lVyLE