Ananda Lewis, the beloved former MTV video jockey and talk show host, has died at 52 after a years-long battle with Stage 4 breast cancer. Her sister, Lakshmi Emory, confirmed her passing in a Facebook post, writing, “She’s free and in His heavenly arms. Lord rest her soul.” Lewis passed away Wednesday morning in hospice care at her Los Angeles home. A San Diego native and Howard University graduate, Lewis rose to national prominence in the 1990s as the host of BET’s Teen Summit, where she addressed social issues affecting teens and once interviewed then-First Lady Hillary Clinton.

She joined MTV in 1997 as a VJ, quickly becoming a staple on shows like Total Request Live and Hot Zone, eventually earning praise from The New York Times as “the hip-hop generation’s reigning It Girl.” In 2001, she left MTV to launch The Ananda Lewis Show and later served as a correspondent for The Insider. In 2020, Lewis publicly revealed her breast cancer diagnosis, hoping her story would inspire women to prioritize early detection. “If just ONE woman decides to get her mammogram after watching this, what I’m going through will be worth it,” she said.

Lewis pursued a mix of holistic and conventional treatments after initially declining surgery, citing her fear of radiation and distrust in the medical system. In 2024, she spoke candidly in a CNN roundtable about racial disparities in breast cancer care. Her advocacy underscored the urgent need for awareness, especially among Black women, who face significantly higher mortality rates from the disease.