Have you ever wondered who Lenny Kravitz was before he was… you know, four-time Grammy-winner, Hunger Games heartthrob, big-scarf icon Lenny Kravitz? Well, it was a long road to stardom, but back in the day, Mr. Kravitz was just another student at Beverly Hills High School along with a league of other soon-to-be somebodies.
In a new episode of Esquire's "Explain This"—on the occasion of Kravitz's new Esquire US cover story —the 59-year-old singer reflected on his creative classmates. When asked about his fellow alumni, Kravitz said that they still keep in touch. “I just saw Slash, who I went to high school with and Gina Gershon,” Kravitz said. Slash (otherwise known as Saul Hudson), of course, went on to become the lead guitarist of Guns N’ Roses. Meanwhile, Gershon became a talented actress and starred in classics like Bound and Showgirls.
Kravitz's other notable classmate? Nic Cage, who needs no introduction. Though Cage and Kravitz both would become Hollywood stars, it doesn’t sound like the pair have had much time to reconnect since their early days. “I don’t see Nicolas Cage very much, but he was in our school,” Kravitz said. “His name was Nick Coppola at that time. I remember doing a play with him. I was in the orchestra and Nick was on stage. It was Oklahoma. He was singing, and dancing, and acting, and I was playing drums. It was a good time.”
I don’t know who I have to contact to find that footage—but while I investigate, you can catch up on Kravitz’s new music. The rocker’s latest album, Blue Electric Light, debuts on March 15, 2024—and it might be his best work yet. “It was recorded in the Bahamas, at my studio, and it’s beautiful,” Kravitz said.
Bria McNeal is a Manhattan based journalist who is patiently awaiting B5's revival. When she's not writing about all things entertainment, she can be found watching TV or trying to DIY something (likely, at the same time). Her work has appeared in NYLON, Refinery29, InStyle, and her personal newsletter, StirCrazy.
