Pop/Rock
Lenny Kravitz

There may have been other "retro" rock acts before him, but Lenny Kravitz is one of the first to not be pigeonholed to a single style. His debut release, 1989's Let Love Rule, proved to be a surprise hit. Kravitz's sophomore effort, Mama Said, was even stronger than its predecessor, highlighted by the Led Zep-like funk rocker "Always on the Run," as well as the mega hit with the Curtis Mayfield-esque soul ballad "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over," which confirmed that Kravitz's success was no fluke. But the best was yet to come. His third release overall, 1993's Are You Gonna Go My Way, is often considered to be his finest album and was a massive hit. Kravitz became an arena headliner stateside. 1998's 5 proved to have an incredibly long chart life, spawning the biggest hit of Kravitz's career, "Fly Away," almost a year after its original release. Virgin decided to cash in on the album's rebirth by reissuing it with added bonus tracks, one of which became another hit single, a remake of the Guess Who's "American Woman." Kravitz released his ninth album, Black And White America, in the summer of 2011. He followed with Strut in 2014, and he's planning on coming out with a new album very soon, in 2017. Lenny Kravitz continues to tour to sold out shows worldwide.