AceShowbiz - Justin Bieber may have a thousand fans lining up for him, but surely Lionel Richie is not one of them. The "All Night Long" hitmaker, whose daughter Sofia Richie once dated the Canadian heartthrob, appeared to shade the former's talent in a recent interview following "American Idol" Top 10 Reveal Live Show on Monday, April 23.

When talking about eliminating talented singers on the show, Lionel took a jab at the 24-year-old singer. "You know, you look at it and you think, 'OK, if you can hit every note perfectly, why isn't everybody a superstar?' " said the "Endless Love" singer.

"The answer is because it's called a unique quality," he continued. "If you look at Willie Nelson for a second, can he hit a gospel note? Um, no! And [Justin] Bieber, he doesn't hit a high note." Ouch!

However, fellow "American Idol" judge Katy Perry came to Justin's defense. "He hits a high note," the "Swish Swish" singer affirmed. Seemingly not convinced, Richie quipped back, "I'm just saying."

Luke Bryan then stepped in, teasing Katy for being a Belieber. "You defend Bieber, you love some Bieber!" he chimed in. However, the teasing didn't stop Katy from backing the "Sorry" singer's abilities. "I mean, he's extremely talented," she praised Justin.

Lionel dissing Justin out of nowhere probably had something to do with the fact that his daughter Sofia dated the Biebz for two months back in 2016. The 19-year-old model, who is now romantically linked to Kourtney Kardashian's baby daddy Scott Disick, and her then-beau went to romantic trips in Mexico and Japan before things cooled off.

"Justin is very easy to talk to and that's hard to find with people in Los Angeles," Sofia, who was barely 18-year-old at that time, gushed.