Rosie O'Donnell lost her mother at a young age and wants to reconnect with her by tracing her family history. A visit with her brother uncovers family footage of her mother as a young girl but also reveals the first clues to her mother's ancestry. Rosie's journey takes her from Jersey City to Ireland where she discovers that past generations of her family had endured many hardships before being given the opportunity for a better life.

Music runs deep in singer/songwriter Lionel Richie's life, especially due to the close bond he had with his maternal grandmother, Adelaide Towson, who taught music at Tuskegee University. Although they had an incredible relationship, Richie knows nothing about her ancestry and is driven to solve the mystery surrounding the identity of her father. Richie sets out on a journey that will take him from his childhood neighborhood in Tuskegee to Nashville where his great grandfather helped sow the seeds of the Civil Rights movement. A trip to Chattanooga, Tennessee will uncover more clues to the identity of those who paved the way for him.