Photo: Mark Seliger
He would never have dreamed of this, said Lenny Kravitz in his acceptance speech on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, where he was honored and immortalized with a star on 12 March 2024. He also told how he moved from New York to Los Angeles with his mother at the age of eleven.
Lenny Kravitz recalled times when he slept in a car, worked as a dishwasher and at the fish market and bought his first guitar at the age of twelve. Then he stood right here, in front of the famous Capitol Records Building - as a street musician. Mother actress, father TV producer: Lenny Kravitz was actually born into show business. Nevertheless, he had to work hard for his fame. He celebrated his first major success in 1989 with his debut album "Let Love Rule". In 1990, he co-wrote the controversial song "Justify My Love" with Madonna. An alleged affair with the pop queen has neither been confirmed nor denied to this day.
He finally made it to the big leagues the following year with the album "Mama Said" and the song "It Ain't Over Till It's Over", which is still an integral part of any feel-good playlist today. From then on, things went from strength to strength: an MTV Video Music Award in 1993, a Brit Award in 1994, a Grammy every year from 1998 to 2001 - and many more prizes. But the musician also achieved fame and honor as an actor, with roles in "Zoolander" (2001), "The Hunger Games" and most recently with Jennifer Lopez in "Shotgun Wedding". There is no question that Lenny Kravitz has great musical talent - he plays most of the instruments on his albums himself. But he has also recognized that it is not only the acoustic that counts, but also how a star presents himself visually.
Lenny's daughter Zoë summed it up in her laudatory speech in honor of her father: "I've seen a lot. I've seen your authenticity. I've seen the way you care for your loved ones. And I have seen your incredible dedication to art. But most of all, I've seen through your shirts." She revealed that her father was convinced that a shirt that didn't show nipples wasn't a real shirt. Zoë went one better: "The relationship my father has with his fishnet shirts is probably the longest he's ever had." Malicious tongues even claim that Lenny spent more time in the gym than in the recording studio while preparing for his new album. Lenny Kravitz presents the result of all those crunches and sit-ups - a handsome six-pack - in the video for his new song "TK421". He also shows off the entire back of his Adonis body in all its glory. Narcissistic self-portrayal or irony? One thing is certain: Lenny Kravitz knows how to earn a lot of money in the music business. He is an advertising medium for Ray-Ban, Yves Saint Laurent and the Swiss luxury watch brand Jaeger-LeCoultre. As a multi-talented musician, he also works as a designer. And yet he still has plenty of time for music - his twelfth studio album "Blue Electric Light" will be released on May 24, 2024.
Two days later, Lenny celebrates his 60th birthday. He then celebrates on stage: on July 15, 2024 on the Piazza Grande in Locarno and on July 16 on the big lake stage in Montreux.