Ananda Lewis has died. The former MTV VJ who went on to be a talk show host passed away at her Los Angeles home this morning of stage 4 breast cancer. She was 52.
The news was shared by her sister Lakshmi, who told TMZ that Ananda had been enduring the battle with cancer for six years. "She’s free, and in His heavenly arms," she wrote on Facebook. "Lord, rest her soul 🙏🏽"
Ananda Lewis was born in San Diego in 1973. She graduated from Howard University in 1995 and landed a job as the host of BET’s Teen Summit. Later, at MTV, Lewis hosted shows like Total Request Live and Hot Zone. She won several NAACP Image Awards, including one for hosting the 2001 special True Life: I Am Driving While Black. Also in 2001, she left the network to start her own talk show, The Ananda Lewis Show. It was canceled after one season, partially because its pilot episode aired the day before the 9/11 attacks.
She went on to host shows like Unexpected, While You Were Out, America’s Next Producer, and High School Reunion. From 2004 to 2005, she worked as a correspondent for The Insider.
In 2020, Lewis revealed her stage III breast cancer diagnosis, saying she had not been getting regular mammograms due to her fear of radiation. She published an article in Essence in January about her experience with the disease.
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