Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, and actor.

Kravitz has won several awards, including the Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, which he received four years in a row from 1999 to 2002,[5] breaking the record for most wins in that category, and setting the record for most consecutive wins in one category by a male performer.

Kravitz has sold over 40 million albums worldwide and was ranked 93 on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock".

[13][14][15] Through his mother, Kravitz is a second cousin of television weather presenter Al Roker,[16] as their grandfathers were brothers.

[22] At his mother's urging, he joined the California Boys Choir for three years, where he performed a classical repertoire, and sang with the Metropolitan Opera.

[22] It was in Los Angeles that Kravitz was introduced to rock music, listening to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, the Grateful Dead, Aerosmith, Black Sabbath, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Kiss, Pink Floyd, and the Who,[25] and he said he was "attracted to the cool style, the girls, the rock 'n' roll lifestyle.

[29] His other musical influences at the time included Fela Kuti, Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, Pharoah Sanders, and Miles Davis.

Kravitz attended Beverly Hills High School, where he was classmates with Maria McKee, Nicolas Cage, and Slash.

Kravitz met saxophonist Karl Denson and invited him to play on the song "Let Love Rule".

[32] In October 1988, after completing most of the recording, Kravitz approached friend Stephen Elvis Smith, who had served as the music supervisor on Lisa Bonet's The Cosby Show spin-off A Different World.

In less than a month of shopping the recordings, five labels (Warner Bros, Elektra, Geffen, Capitol, and Virgin) were in a bidding war for Kravitz.

"[24] Kravitz released his debut album Let Love Rule in 1989, a combination of rock and funk with a 1960s vibe.

Lisa Bonet directed the debut music video for the title track, "Let Love Rule".

Having played essentially all of the instruments on the album, Kravitz had to quickly assemble a touring band to support the Let Love Rule release.

Kravitz's version of the song originally came from the soundtrack of Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and was added to 5 as a bonus track in 1999.

He later joined Madonna live on stage to play guitar on the song, "I Love New York", at the last of four Paris shows.

[39] On July 7, 2007, Kravitz performed at the Brazilian leg of Live Earth in Rio de Janeiro,[40] making him one of three major international rock stars to perform two huge free concerts at the world-famous Copacabana Beach along with Macy Gray and the Rolling Stones.

The Live Earth concert, with eight other acts on the bill, including Pharrell and Macy Gray had an audience of 400,000 on the beach.

Also in 2007, Kravitz released a version of "Cold Turkey" by John Lennon on the charity CD Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur.

Kravitz was on the song "Whole Lotta Lovin'" along with Rebirth Brass Band, Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews, Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and Maceo Parker.

A sample of "Are You Gonna Go My Way" was used in American singer Chris Willis's single "Too Much In Love", released on August 16, 2011.

In 2014 Lenny Kravitz released his tenth studio album Strut on his own Roxie Records via Kobalt Label Services.

[49] In 2015, Kravitz performed alongside Katy Perry at the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show.

[54][55] In April 2018, Kravitz signed with BMG Rights Management for a new worldwide publishing music deal to go with his new album Raise Vibration, released in September 2018.

[58] In December 2023, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced shortlists for the 96th Oscars ceremony, and "Road to Freedom" was included in the Best Original Song category.

[65] Kravitz Design also envisioned a luxury recording studio for The Setai Resort and Residences in Miami Beach, New York, Paris, and New Orleans.

[66] In 2010, Kravitz Design collaborated with Flavor Paper wallpaper on the Tropicalismo Collection, a line inspired by Brazil's Tropicalia art movement of the late 1960s.

[67] In 1985, Kravitz met Cosby Show actress Lisa Bonet backstage at a New Edition concert in California.

[80] Such spirituality is prominently featured in many of his songs, such as the lyrics on his album Baptism, and a tattoo on his back which is inscribed with "My Heart Belongs to Jesus Christ".

[82][83][84] In 2024, Kravitz reaffirmed his desire to remain celibate once again, stating to The Guardian that it was his father's infidelity that inspired him to make a change.