Ananda Lewis

Sarasvati Ananda Lewis (March 21, 1973 – June 11, 2025) was an American broadcast journalist, veejay, and carpenter. Born in Los Angeles, California, she graduated cum laude from Howard University in 1995 with a degree in history. Her career began early, participating in a beauty pageant at age eight which led to work in local theater and television. During college, she gained prominence in Shai’s R&B music video “Baby, I’m Yours” (1993) and soon after became the host of BET’s ‘Teen Summit’. On this show, she addressed significant issues affecting teenagers, earning an NAACP Image Award for her work in 1997.

Lewis transitioned to MTV, leveraging her platform to connect with a broader youth audience. As an MTV VJ, she hosted popular shows like ‘Total Request Live’, ‘Hot Zone’, and ‘MTV Jams’ from 1997. She was pivotal in covering topical programs, including forums on school violence after the Columbine High School massacre, and earned another NAACP Image Award in 2001 for the MTV special ‘True Life: I Am Driving While Black’. Her influence led to ‘People’ magazine including her in its “50 Most Beautiful People” list in 2000. In 2001, she launched ‘The Ananda Lewis Show’, a nationally syndicated talk show focusing on social issues like domestic violence and breast cancer, running for two seasons. After a break, she returned to television as a correspondent for ‘The Insider’ (2004) and later hosted the revival of ‘While You Were Out’ on TLC in 2019.

In October 2020, Lewis publicly announced her battle with stage 3 breast cancer, diagnosed in 2019, emphasizing the importance of early detection and mammograms. Her cancer progressed to stage 4, and she openly discussed her health journey, including her initial reluctance to undergo a double mastectomy, a decision she later regretted. Lewis advocated for preventative health measures, sharing her insights in an article for ‘Essence’ in 2025. She passed away on June 11, 2025, in Los Angeles.