MTV VJ Ananda Lewis Passed Away, Aged 52, After Battle with Breast Cancer

Former MTV VJ Ananda Lewis has passed away at the age of 52, after sharing her journey battling breast cancer.

Ananda Lewis, a former MTV VJ who helped connect a generation of music enthusiasts to their favorite artists on the network, has died at the age of 52. News of her passing was confirmed by her sister, Lakshmi Emory, on social media. No further details were provided, though Lewis was open about her fight with breast cancer in recent years, speaking with CNN about her treatment.

Lewis first shared in 2020 that she was diagnosed with stage III breast cancer after conducting a self exam. At the time, she encouraged her followers to be up to date on their mammograms, revealing she had been delayed in getting hers before her diagnosis.

“I need you to share this with the women in your life who may be as stubborn as I was about mammograms, and I need you to tell them that they have to do it,” said Lewis. “Early detection, especially for breast cancer, changes your outcome. It can save their life.”

In October, Lewis revealed that her cancer had progressed to stage IV. She sat down with CNN’s Stephanie Elam and Sara Sidner—the latter of whom was also diagnosed with breast cancer in 2024—to discuss their respective health journeys. Lewis opened up about the course of treatment she chose to pursue. “This journey is very personal, and you have to do what works for you and only you,” she said.

During MTV’s heyday in the ‘90s, Lewis was a fixture on the network, appearing as a host on MTV Live. From 2001 to 2002, she also had her own talk show, “The Ananda Lewis Show,” which ran for over 250 episodes.

She studied theater, music, photography, and dance for nine years at the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts, and went on to attend Harvard University. There, she spent time as a youth activist, working for the Youth Leadership and Development Institute (YLDI) as a trainer, working with teenagers in a program called Youth at Risk.

It was that experience that inspired her to audition for BET’s “Teen Summit” series, a program on which she served as host for three seasons. The series focused on social issues affecting Black Americans. Alongside a co-host, Lewis interviewed big names like Hillary Clinton and Kobe Bryant.

With her experience hosting “Teen Summit,” Lewis became a host and “video jockey” (VJ) on MTV in 1997. She rose to prominence hosting “Hot Zone” and “Total Request Live” during the network’s peak. While at MTV, she maintained her passion for advocacy, moderating forums on school violence after the Columbine shooting, and hosting MTV’s news special, “True Life: I Am Driving While Black,” in 1999.

In later years, she was a correspondent on CBS’s “The Insider,” and made guest appearances on several TV shows, including “America’s Top Dog” and “Celebrity Mole: Yucatan.”