48 Facts About Nile Rodgers

Nile Rodgers worked with artists including Kylie Minogue, Nervo, Jake Shears, the B-52s, Keith Urban, Jeff Beck, Daft Punk, Mick Jagger, Coldplay, Grace Jones, the Vaughan Brothers, Bryan Ferry, Christina Aguilera, Lady Gaga, and Beyonce.

Nile Rodgers won three Grammy Awards in 2014 for his work on Daft Punk's Random Access Memories, and two in 2023 for his work with Beyonce on her album Renaissance.

In 2018, Nile Rodgers co-founded Hipgnosis Songs Fund, a publicly traded music intellectual property investment company.

Nile Rodgers is a Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame via the Musical Excellence category in 2017.

Nile Rodgers was born on September 19,1952, in the Lower East Side, New York City, to Beverly Goodman.

Nile Rodgers gave birth to Rodgers when she was 14.

Glanzrock and Goodman were addicted to heroin, and Nile Rodgers began using drugs at 13.

Nile Rodgers became a subsection leader of the Lower Manhattan branch of the New York Black Panther Party.

Nile Rodgers met bassist Bernard Edwards in 1970 while working as a touring musician for the Sesame Street stage show.

Nile Rodgers worked extensively with Duran Duran, remixing their biggest-selling single, "The Reflex", producing "Wild Boys" on their 1984 live album, Arena, and co-producing the album Notorious.

In 1985, Nile Rodgers produced albums for Sheena Easton, Jeff Beck, Thompson Twins, Mick Jagger, and others, and performed at Live Aid with Madonna and the Thompson Twins.

Nile Rodgers produced Workin' Overtime, Diana Ross' return to Motown, and the soundtracks for Alphabet City, Gremlins, White Nights, and The Fly.

Nile Rodgers later composed an orchestral soundtrack, his first, for the film Coming to America.

Nile Rodgers formed the short-lived experimental band Outloud in 1987, with David Letterman's guitarist, composer, and vocalist Felicia Collins and French session musician, producer, composer, and keyboardist Philippe Saisse; the trio released a single album, Out Loud, on Warner Bros.

In September 1990, shortly after the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Nile Rodgers-produced Vaughan Brothers album Family Style was released.

Nile Rodgers produced records for David Bowie, Eric Clapton, the B-52s, David Lee Roth, Ric Ocasek, the Stray Cats and others early in the decade, and worked on the soundtracks for Thelma and Louise, Cool World, and The Beavis and Butt-head Experience.

Edwards and Nile Rodgers performed with Sister Sledge, Steve Winwood, and Slash in a series of commemorative concerts in Japan.

Nile Rodgers started playing live concerts again while composing and producing music for the film soundtracks Beverly Hills Cop III, Blue Chips, The Flintstones and Feeling Minnesota, working with Bob Dylan, among others.

In 1998, Nile Rodgers founded Sumthing Else Music Works record label and Sumthing Distribution, an independent music label distributor.

In 2002, Nile Rodgers returned to work again with the original five members of Duran Duran when he co-produced Astronaut.

In July 2002, Nile Rodgers co-founded the We Are Family Foundation with his life partner, Nancy Hunt.

Nile Rodgers provided liner notes for the set, which was reissued in 2013.

In 2017, after 11 nominations for Chic, Nile Rodgers was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with an award for Musical Excellence.

In July 2018, Nile Rodgers co-founded Hipgnosis Songs Fund with Merck Mercuriadis.

Nile Rodgers played at Cardiff Castle on July 12,2019, and on February 17,2020, he participated in Eric Clapton's tribute concert for Ginger Baker.

Nile Rodgers has hosted a podcast on Apple Music since August 2020.

On November 13,2020, Nile Rodgers was featured on "Stop Crying Your Heart Out" as part of the BBC Radio 2's Allstars' Children in Need charity single.

Nile Rodgers produced The Big Decider, the first album by The Zutons 13 years.

Nile Rodgers donated $1 million to the We Are Family Foundation, the organization he co-founded, to mark both his birthday and the foundation's 20th anniversary.

Nile Rodgers performed "Modern Love" and "Let's Dance" with Josh Homme, Omar Hakim and Gaz Coombes at the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium on September 3,2022.

Nile Rodgers collaborated with Duran Duran on their single "Black Moonlight", one of three original songs on Duran Duran's Halloween-inspired album Danse Macabre.

In January 2024, the World Economic Forum announced that Nile Rodgers would receive its 2024 Crystal Award.

Nile Rodgers provided guitar on Norwegian DJ Kygo's self-titled fifth studio album, on the track "For Life", featuring English singer Zak Abel.

Nile Rodgers provided additional guitar on British pop rock band Coldplay's song "Good Feelings", which features vocals from Nigerian singer Ayra Starr.

Nile Rodgers again worked with Beyonce on her 2024 album, Cowboy Carter.

Edwards and Nile Rodgers wrote and produced Carly Simon's "Why", a top 10 hit in the UK that helped resurrect Simon's career.

Nile Rodgers became increasingly in-demand as a producer and composer for film and television following the success of the Soup for One soundtrack.

Nile Rodgers scored the film Blue Chips, and reunited with Murphy to score Beverly Hills Cop III.

Nile Rodgers produced a remake of "Axel F", from the first Beverly Hills Cop, which he performed with Richard Hilton.

In 2018, Once in a Lifetime Sessions with Nile Rodgers premiered on Netflix.

Nile Rodgers has appeared in documentaries about David Bowie, Diana Ross, Elton John, Michael Jackson, Rick James, George Michael, Duran Duran, Daft Punk, Public Enemy, Madonna, Avicii, Studio 54, the Seventies, the Eighties, the Nineties, recorded music, girl groups, the disco era, disco, house music, funk, and soul music.

Nile Rodgers was featured in the 2023 BBC documentary about Little Richard, Little Richard: King and Queen of Rock'n'Roll.

Nile Rodgers auctioned more than 100 guitars and bass guitars from his personal collection to benefit We Are Family Foundation in December 2021.

Nile Rodgers plays a 1960 Fender Stratocaster with a 1959 neck, nicknamed The Hitmaker, which he acquired as a trade-in at a shop in Miami Beach, Florida.

Nile Rodgers stopped using drugs and alcohol in 1994 after a friend showed him a tape of a performance during which he was inebriated.

Nile Rodgers was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer in October 2010.

Nile Rodgers documented his illness on a blog called Walking on Planet C Nile Rodgers was given the all-clear in 2013.

Nile Rodgers lived in Westport, Connecticut until July 2021 when he moved to Miami, Florida with his life partner, Nancy Hunt.