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Biography

Nicole Camille Escovedo was born in Berkeley, California, on September 21, 1981. Her biological parents were Peter Michael Escovedo, a member of Lionel Richie's band and brother to '80s pop percussionist Sheila E., and an anonymous backstage assistant. At the age of 3, for financial reasons, Nicole moved in with her father's bandmate Lionel and his then-wife Brenda Harvey-Richie. Six years later, Richie officially adopted Nicole. There are plenty of privileges to being raised in affluent circles. Nicole's formative years were spent at Los Angeles' prestigious Buckley School, where she met and befriended Paris Hilton, the heir to the Hilton empire. But money is also often synonymous with the fast lane, and as a teenager Nicole began partying hard and experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Following her high school graduation in 2000, she decided to go to college. She enrolled in the University of Arizona, the same school as pro basketball player Luke Walton and actress Heather Blair. Nicole dropped out after two years. In 2003, Richie and best friend Paris Hilton starred in Season 1 of the reality series The Simple Life, in which they lived for a month with a family in the rural community of Altus, Arkansas. In late 2005, FOX chose not to renew The Simple Life, explaining that they didn't see a place for it in their schedule. A month later, cable network picked up the series for its fourth season. In July 2008, plans were announced to turn Richie's 2005 novel, The Truth About Diamonds, into a television series.