Known for his unique blend of just about every music genre including rock, soul, reggae, psychedelic rock, R’n’B and ballads, Lenny Kravitz is a multi-talented artist whose craft has been perfected since 1978 (when he was just 14 years old). He won the Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for four consecutive years (1998-2002), which broke the record for most wins in that particular category and most consecutive wins in one category by a male artist.
He has been nominated for and won awards from the likes of BRIT Awards, American Music Awards and MTV Video Music Awards to name but a handful. Since 2011, Kravitz has also been an Officer of the Odre des Arts et des Lettres in France. His penchant for producing music that spans a plethora of genres and cultures could be attributed to his multi-cultured heritage (his mother, who played Helen Willis on the TV show The Jeffersons, was of Afro-American and Afro-Bahamian descent and his father, from a Russian-Jewish family originating from Ukraine). Then again, it could simply be down to growing up on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York, with his parents taking him to concerts form an early age. These live concerts included a Madison Square Garden performance from The Jackson Five, which quickly became Kravtiz’s favorite group.
Other influences on his musical style are James Brown, Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder. Following the family moving to the west coast from New York, Kravitz was exposed to rock music from Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, which then influenced his music further, later joined by inspiration from John Lennon and Bob Marley.
Kravitz’s refreshingly retro style (against the general brashness of the 80’s) saw the success of his debut album, “Let Love Rule” (1989) with its radio-hit title track responsible for its triumph. Kravitz also wrote Madonna’s hit single, “Justify My Love” and has collaborated with Guns ‘n’ Roses guitarist, Slash on “Always on the Run.” His most widely recognized album success is third album from 1993 named “Are You Gonna Go My Way” which saw radio hit singles like “Heaven Helo” and “Believe.”
Kravitz is famous for his elaborate stage performances and music videos, and has recently acted in The Hunger Games film series as Cinna.
Lenny Kravitz is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist who has been famous since the 90’s. Some people might dismiss his music as lightweight or without too much substance, but odds are that they are only familiar with some of his more pop-oriented songs that were constantly on the radio in the early 2000’s.
He is actually a much more dynamic and talented performer than some would give him credit for – sort of a modern-day Prince. He actually can play just about every instrument featured on his albums, so you certainly have to give him props for that.
One great thing about a Lenny Kravitz show is that he attracts a very diverse audience. As a multi-racial individual who plays songs with a wide variety of musical styles, there will probably be some songs in any given set that will appeal to just about everyone. A Lenny Kravitz show draws an audience with people of all races and ages.
He also puts on quite an elaborate stage show, complete with a number of interesting costumes! Open-minded music fans will find that there is a lot more to Lenny Kravitz than his songs that get radio play. His eclectic, soulful music and surprising amount of technical chops will win over all but the most cynical individual.
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