Ananda Lewis is a famous host on an American television news channel. She used to do some modeling stints before she focused on hosting. Ananda is a familiar face for those born in the ’90s because she was a famous VJ on MTV over a decade from the early 90s to the early 2000s. Meet her husband Harry Smith. Know Ananda Lewis’ net worth and family.
Who Is Ananda Lewis?
Ananda Lewis has mixed origins of Native American and African American. Her birthdate is March 21, 1973. She is currently 50 years old. Los Angeles in California is her birthplace. She has roots from the tribes of the Blackfoot and Creek. The meaning of her name Ananda is bliss in Sanskrit.
Lewis finished her degree in history at Howard University in Washington DC, with cum laude honours in 1995. In college, Ananda worked as a volunteer for Youth at Risk, a mentoring group.
The kids she worked with encouraged her to join the auditions for the hosting job on BET’s Teen Summit. Eventually, she got the job as Teen Summit host, and it lasted for three seasons.
A few years later, MTV hired Ananda Lewis to become their veejay and host. Her shows on MTV include Total Request Live and Hot Zone.
She continued her advocacy to help and inspire the youth of America through her shows. After the massacre in Columbine High School, Ananda was tasked to host a forum about school violence. She was also the host for the tribute for Aaliyah, the 90s singer whose plane crashed in 2001. In 2001, the NAACP Award was given to her for her work on the MTV special entitled, True Life: I Am Driving While Black.
In 2001, Ananda finally decided to part ways with MTV and became the host of her show. The same year, later in September 2001, The Ananda Lewis Show first aired on television. She discussed issues affecting women of all ages on her show.
Her successful show aired on NBC and WB stations. However, the network canceled it after only one year on the air. In 2004, Ananda got another big break when she became the correspondent for The Insider. She got to interview some of the biggest names in show business.
Ananda Lewis Is Married To her Husband Harry Smith.
The husband of Ananda Lewis is Harry Smith. The name may sound familiar because he has a famous brother. Harry is the sibling of actor Will Smith. His former job was as a senior officer of the Australian Army.
Nowadays, Harry works as a manager and accountant at Treyball Entertainment. Will Smith owns the company. Ananda and Harry have one child together. The name of their son is Harry Smith Jr, and he was born in 2011. The family is now residing in the San Fernando Valley.
The rumoured past relationships of Ananda include rapper Ray Z and businessman Damon Dash. She has also dated Chris Webber, Gerald Maxwell, and Sam Cassell.
Net Worth and Salary.
The net worth of Ananda Lewis is $1 million. Her main source of revenue is her job as a television host. The exact figures for her salary as a host are unknown.
Family: Parents, Sister, and Siblings
The mother of Ananda Lewis was a Pacific Bell manager in the accounts department. Her father was an expert computer animator. In addition, she has a sister, Lakshmi, who is now a successful medical doctor. The parents of Ananda separated ways when she was only two years old.
She and her sister lived with their grandmother as their mother went off on a long holiday. As a child, she stuttered terribly. That did not discourage her from entering the Little Miss San Diego Pageant, which she won. A talent agent spotted her in the pageant and asked her to join television and theatre productions.