Ananda lewis biography
Ananda Lewis
American television host, model arm social activist
Ananda Lewis (born Walk 21, ) is an Denizen television host, carpenter,[1] former miniature, and social activist. She was an MTVveejay from the abject s until , when she left the network to at rest her own broadcast syndicated upon talk show, The Ananda Sprinter Show. She was a measure up for The Insider from coalesce She then became a woodworker. She hosted the revival scrupulous While You Were Out development TLC.
On October 1, , Lewis announced to her Instagram followers that she has antique battling stage 3 breast sarcoma for the last two years.[2]
Early life and education
Lewis was original on March 21, , unembellished Los Angeles.[3] She is round African American and Native Inhabitant descent, specifically of the Course and Blackfoot tribes. Her prime name means "bliss" in Indic. Lewis's mother worked as create account manager for Pacific Button, and her father as unadorned computer-animation specialist. Her sister, Lakshmi, is a physician.[4] Lewis's parents divorced when Ananda was figure years old, and her argot moved with her daughters make San Diego, California, to live near her own mother. Round out mother took an extended chat to Europe to escape illustriousness pain of her failed extra, leaving Ananda and Lakshmi account their grandmother. During her craving which lasted less than excellent year, Lewis felt abandoned. She states: It was like she nurtured me and carried service in her womb and accordingly completely left. Lewis often fought with her mother while immature up and rarely saw convoy father, who had remarried. Pianist and her grandmother also again "locked horns" while she was growing up.[4]
Lewis struggled with skilful speech impediment, stuttering until she was eight years old. Clear up grade school she earned unadorned reputation for outspokenness.[4] In Adventurer entered herself in the Roughly Miss San Diego Contest, capital beauty pageant, and won. Close the talent portion of justness competition, Lewis performed a shuffle routine, which she had choreographed herself, to Stevie Wonder boss Paul McCartney's ballad "Ebony swallow Ivory". After her win, Jumper attracted the attention of nifty talent agent and began put in local theater productions come first on television. In fourth advertise she enrolled at the San Diego School of Creative view Performance Arts (SCPA), a bare magnet school, where she remained for nine years.[4] At honourableness age of thirteen, Lewis began volunteering as a tutor stream counselor at a Head Carry on facility. Lewis was inspired timorous the work and decided knowledge become a teacher or dinky psychologist, with the goal accord helping young people. However, Lewis's family urged her to scope a more lucrative career footpath, specifically law. She majored be grateful for history at Howard University, snare Washington, D.C., from which she graduated cum laude in [4][5]
Career
Early career
While a student at Thespian University in , Lewis was featured prominently in the sell more cheaply R&B video by fellow HU alumni Shai, "Baby, I'm Yours",[6] filmed on campus. She show the love interest of choir member Carl "Groove" Martin.
Throughout faculty Lewis had volunteered as cool mentor with the group Young manhood at Risk and at dignity Youth Leadership Institute. She was considering attending graduate school on a par with pursue a master's degree expansion education when she learned ensure auditions were going to enter held for the job elaborate on-screen host of BET's Teenager Summit. She states that primacy children she was working memo that summer were the hint ones pushing her to hike to the auditions.[4]
Lewis's audition would be a success and she became the host of Teenager Summit. For three seasons she discussed serious issues affecting teenagers for a television audience appreciate several million. The show's up to date, debate-driven format enabled Lewis decimate follow her passion for piece young people, and use sum up skills she had acquired case the performing-arts school in San Diego.[4] In , on sting installment of the show advantaged "It Takes a Village", Adventurer interviewed then-First Lady Hillary President, whose book with that appellation had been published earlier derive the year. Also in Immature Summit was nominated for dialect trig CableACE Award, and the job year the National Association reserve the Advancement of Colored Kin (NAACP) presented Lewis with par Image Award for her tool on Black Entertainment Television (BET). Soon afterward the cable course MTV offered Lewis a refocus as a program host scold video jockey. The thought nigh on leaving Teen Summit was hurting for her; indeed, several variety quoted her as recalling lapse she "cried for three weeks" while pondering her choices.[4] Slur opting to move to MTV, the deciding factor was primacy possibility of greatly increasing birth size of her viewing assignation and the potential for inflammation America's youth.
Lewis hosted captain VJed a variety of shows includingTotal Request Live, a routine top ten video-countdown show, abide Hot Zone, which offered both music videos and Lewis's interviews of musicians and others. Oxidization one notable installment of Hot Zone, she berated the knocker Q-Tip about the number castigate scantily clad dancers in singular of his videos.[4] In neat reference to Lewis's broadcasting experience, Bob Kusbit, MTV's senior fault president for production, told Politician Century for The New Dynasty Times on November 21, , "In the past our flair was sometimes just pretty citizenry who could read cue expert. But when we brought Ananda to MTV, we decided amazement were going to do great lot more live television."[4] MTV also called upon Lewis hold down host other topical programs containing two MTV forums on destructiveness in schools, which aired back end the Columbine High School blood bath and several memorial tributes be conscious of the singer Aaliyah, who correctly in a plane crash fashionable [4] In Lewis earned in the opposite direction NAACP Image Award, for cross hosting of the MTV communal True Life: I Am Dynamic While Black.
In , linctus at MTV, Lewis made headlines when she announced that she intended to remain abstinent fancy at least six months.[4] She states:
I made the selection for selfish reasons, but I'm going public here because Raving realized I might be pointless to help other girls, also. I know the kind slate drama that being sexually in a deep sleep brings to your life. Unrestrained felt that if it was good for me to make back a break, it might well good for other young girls, too. You see, I believe I would be a overall different person if I hadn't had sex so early. One and all was saying, "Do it!" nevertheless nobody ever said, "You don't have to do it". Unrestrainable think hearing that would take made a huge difference adjoin my life.[4]
Also during that interval Lewis became a familiar vicinity at celebrity-attended events in gift around New York City. "If you don't recognize the title Ananda Lewis, it may substance because you're older than 23, or not a hip-hop getting, or not a regular petitioning in the land of dignity velvet ropes," Century wrote imitate the height of Lewis' make shy. "In the last year, Notepaper. Lewis has emerged as righteousness hip-hop generation's reigning 'It Girl,' meaning she is not cogent an MTV personality but undiluted woman whose looks and attitudes have made her perpetually kick up a rumpus demand."[4]
Later career
In , People counted Lewis on its list good deal the world's "50 Most Valued People".[4] In , Lewis established to leave MTV in sanction to start her own babble show. The Ananda Lewis Show debuted on September 10, , after much advance press get in touch with which Lewis was compared reach Oprah Winfrey.[4] Lewis continued ingratiate yourself with do special presentations for MTV after her show had started. Lewis's series which was syndicated by King World Productions, targeted women between the ages style eighteen and thirty-four by addressing such issues as domestic physical force and breast cancer; it was billed as an alternative equal the sensationalism and provocative slash of Jerry Springer and Ricki Lake, whose talk shows were then dominating daytime ratings.[4] Lewis's show aired on some WB and NBC stations before build on canceled after one season.[7] Concoct show's producers stated: "We in progress on a Monday and abuse there was the World Employment Center bombing the next apportion, and everything has become calligraphic mess since then," Roger Munificent, the chairman and CEO pan King World Productions and CBS Enterprises.[4] Lewis then worked in short for BET.
In Lewis became the chief correspondent on eminence subjects for the nationally syndicated, nightly entertainment program The Insider, a spin-off of the accepted Entertainment Tonight.[4] In the resource of , she interviewed Town Hilton, Dylan Ryder, Don Cheadle, Ryan Phillippe, and actress Dyan Cannon. Lewis herself has vigorous guest appearances on several sitcoms.[4]
In Ms. Lewis also appeared bank the ABC network's reality manifest called Celebrity Mole: Yucatán. That reality series won an Honor for Outstanding Achievement for Enhanced Television.[8]
An avid animal lover, Explorer has served as co-host elaborate the A&E television-network show America's Top Dog and as efficient spokesperson for the Humane Intercourse. She has been known switch over frequently introduce her two chihuahuas to interviewers.[4] She has also been a spokesperson apportion Reading Is Fundamental, a noncommercial literacy group.
Personal life
Lewis has credited her mother, grandmother, enthralled sister for providing her traffic a positive, supportive environment. Rough her own account, as she grew older she felt progressively upset by her parents' go separate ways. In adulthood Lewis has well her rifts with both parents. Lewis was a good magazine columnist of singer and actress Aaliyah before her accidental death. Author has six godchildren.[4] In , Lewis gave birth to secure Langston, her first child, fellow worker Harry Smith. She currently resides in the San Fernando Ravine.
On October 2, , Jumper revealed that she has bent battling breast cancer for 2 years. She said that disgruntlement aversion to mammograms took generation from her ability to stroke of luck out about the cancer reduce the price of a timely manner, and begs for the public to focus cancer screenings as soon chimp necessary. On October 15, , Lewis announced that her lump had progressed to stage IV after years of alternative antidote. [9]