UB In Memoriam: Renowned Journalist Ananda Lewis

Ananda Lewis passed away in Los Angeles yesterday June 11th, 2025, at the age of 52.

Survived by her husband, Harry Smith and their son, Langston.

As 80s babies, UB can tell you that BET was everything! When Teen Summit premiered in 1989, Ananda & DaJour presented a special place just for us Black teens. Where we could check in with each other every week.

From there Ananda Lewis gradually became a staple in what true, intentional, encouraging and educational journalism really is!

“I’ve always thought that if we could all walk in each other’s shoes for just one day, then we might have a little more empathy for each other.”

Provocative. Opinionated. Alluring. Relatable – these are all monikers that were associated with Ananda Lewis, an award-winning broadcast personality whose years with BET and MTV earned her recognition from her peers and the adoration of a core group of loyal fans who watched her star rise.

Raised in San Diego, California, Ananda attended Howard University in Washington D.C., where she graduated Cum Laude with a B.A. degree in History.

A combination of deep compassion, true intelligence, striking beauty and a big mouth helped award winning television host Ananda Lewis reach new heights. “I’m an Aries, but I have some Pisces mixed in there,” Ananda once stated.

In Sanskrit, Ananda means “bliss.”

Ananda had been touching lives on and off screen since the age of 13.

Her talents garnered her a wealth of achievements.

Ananda Lewis was a Head Start volunteer while a student at the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts.

For nine years (4th through 12th grades) Ananda Lewis studied theater, vocal music, photography, and dance at the prestigious school that she credits with giving her the ability to maintain a free spirit and cultivate her confidence. “The teachers I had at SDSCPA and the supportive, nurturing environment of the campus in general are probably the #1 reason I am seeing success now,” she stated.

After graduating from high school, Ananda left San Diego to attend Howard University in Washington, D.C.

While attending college in Washington, D.C., Ananda Lewis continued to evolve as a youth activist. “My college roommate, Dana Jones, introduced me to an intense, life-restructuring program for teenagers called ‘Youth at Risk’. During our sophomore year, we volunteered in the program for a year which included a 10-day camp retreat with 98 young people that changed their lives as well as mine.”

During the summers of ’94 and ’95, Ananda Lewis worked for the Youth Leadership and Development Institute (YLDI) as a trainer in personal power, leadership skills, parenting and nutrition, conflict resolution and violence prevention. “I had 20 young-folk everyday for 3 months per summer. It was so intense to witness the impact of my work and it confirmed for me that being a teacher was what I came there for.”

Ananda Lewis earned her degree (a BA in History) and graduated Cum Laude from Howard in 1995.

Later that summer, she joined actor Malik Yoba to facilitate a youth conference in Belize, Central America. “It was my first real trip out of the U.S. and I saw that the problems of my generation were global, not local. I came back for my second summer at YLDI completely recharged and refocused on the empowerment of my people.”

At the end of the program that year, Ananda Lewis was facing some major life choices: joining Teach for America, moving back to San Diego, going back to college for a Masters Degree in education, or auditioning for a show on the Black Entertainment Television (BET)network called “Teen Summit.”

The teenagers in her training room encouraged her to audition for “Teen Summit.” So Ananda mustered up some courage, fought back her dislike of the entertainment industry, auditioned and got the job as host!

A weekly forum exploring hard-hitting subjects, such as date rape, political participation and teen parenting. Described by BET as a space to give teenagers a chance to talk out their problems and be entertained as we spotlight the achievements of their peers.

For three seasons Ananda Lewis served as Host of BET‘s “Teen Summit,” one of the station’s top rated shows which reached 42 million household’s LIVE each Saturday morning.

Her gift for affecting the lives of young people beamed out at us through the screen and her natural and obviously genuine relationship with co-host DaJour, had a lot of us thinking they were siblings. “Everybody would ask if DaJour, was my brother. I guess in a way he was – through talking about our lives, families and how to improve ourselves and our show.”

The teamwork obviously served them well. Teen Summit‘s “It Takes a Village” show earned them a 1997 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Youth Series in large part because of Ananda Lewis‘s interview with Hillary Rodham-Clinton.

“Teen Summit” was also nominated for 1996 Cable Ace Award for its special on “homeless teens.”

During the summer of 1997, Ananda Lewis faced another life-changing decision when an opportunity at another television network arose.

MTV had come knocking and Ananda was not sure about opening the door. “Up until that time I had been doing a show that meant great deal to not only me, but our viewers and the continued progress and healing of everyone it touched. I knew that I would not readily have access to doing a show like this again for a very long time and I had a real problem with that. For years it had been clear to me that I came to this planet to impact people’s lives, change things and help people heal by increasing their personal power and rejecting the lies we’ve all been taught since birth about ourselves and our potential. Yet I understood that in order to do that effectively, I would need the attention of the masses, not just my own people. I saw MTV not only as access to the masses, but also as an opportunity to be more of the woman I am and cultivate my ability to have fun, my social skills and whatever else the Creator had in store for me with this new opportunity.”

Ananda Lewis emerged as one of MTV‘s highest-profile personalities, as her on-air responsibilities went far beyond covering music.

Showcasing her interviewing talents, she hosted “Hot Zone,” where she went one-on-one with celebrity guests and also covered entertainment, style and other trends.

In 1999, she tackled issues of race and prejudice as host of the award-winning special “True Life: I am Driving While Black,” for which she earned an NAACP Image Award.

She also served as host and interviewer for “Total Request Live (TRL),” and has front-lined such MTV live events as Woodstock ’99, New Year’s Eve on Times Square Live and many other specials like Destiny’s Child Live and MTV Cribs.

Ananda once shared when she realized a talking career was for her; “Well, my family will attest to the fact that I’ve been speaking my mind since I was five, so it’s deeply ingrained in my personality. Having a point of view is very natural for me. I think it’s really interesting that I use my mouth to make a living, considering I had to deal with a speech impediment through the age of eight. For three years, my mom had me work with a speech therapist, and I guess the results speak for themselves.”

Ananda Lewis‘ popularity generated interest from Vogue, Self, TV Guide, In Style, Cosmopolitan, Allure, W and US, and she was named one of People Magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People” of 2000.

She was also a frequent guest on the celebrity talk circuit, with appearances on Politically Incorrect, The View, The Chris Rock Show, The Late Show with Craig Kilborn and Hollywood Squares.

Ananda, whose on-air insight into multi-generational issues was backed by years of social activism, and was recognized as one of a new generation of leaders.

Ananda Lewis was invited to the White House to launch the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign with Tipper Gore, served as a panelist for the MSNBC/Newsweek special series on issues facing black woman professionals and was featured on MSNBC‘s forum on race relations live from the 16th Street Baptist Church.

She was a spokesperson for RIF (Reading is Fundamental), and has been actively involved in programs for at-risk youths and the Humane Society.

In 2001 Ananda Lewis remerged as host of King World‘s new, daily, one-hour, syndicated talk series, “The Ananda Lewis Show.”

For Ananda, launching a talk show seemed like a natural progression. “I have worked all my career for an opportunity like this.”

And with more than 1000 hours of on-air experience at the time, she was proof that hard work pays off. “I know what it takes to put a show on the air. The live television experience is really like no other, because you must think on your feet and you can’t hold back. Viewers sense uncertainty. I’ve hosted panels on hot and controversial topics, spoken with people in the headlines and, oftentimes, produced and researched my own segments. My experience has given me a strong feel for what’s missing in talk, and I am confident that we can break out of the box with this show.”

Ananda once shared what she would of chosen as a career choice, if not journalism; “I’d be teaching. I pursued my degree in history so that I could be a teacher. And the summer I auditioned for Teen Summit at BET, I was about to apply to Teach for America to become a teacher in Maryland. I now consider my role as a talk show host an opportunity to teach as well as learn.”

In 2004, Ananda became the chief correspondent on celebrity subjects for the nationally syndicated, nightly entertainment program “The Insider,” a spin-off of legendary Entertainment Tonight (ET).

In 2020 Ananda Lewis revealed that she had been battling breast cancer for 2 years. While in 2024, she announced that her cancer had progressed to stage IV after six years.

Talented and versatile, Ananda Lewis was also committed to raising awareness about social issues — topics that bridge not only generation gaps, but relationship gaps as well.

Ananda, who was a registered member of the Muscogee Tribe of Creek Indians, hoped that her accomplishments would be a source of pride and inspiration to Native Americans everywhere.

UB Sends Our Condolences to the Family, Friends and Fans of Ananda Lewis!