Rock and roll icon Lenny Kravitz performed a ripping three-song medley at the MTV Video Music Awards on Wednesday (Sept. 11).
Introduced by British singer-songwriter Suki Waterhouse — who called him a “rock God with a sound completely his own” — Kravitz started his set with his signature 1993 classic “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” wearing a white boa and a barely-there silver-fringe vest. He then segued seamlessly into his disco-tinged 2024 single “Human,” flanked by backing dancers and going back-to-back with his open-vested co-guitarist.
Kravitz ended the medley with a performance of “Fly,” the Quavo-featuring reinvention of his huge 1998 hit “Fly Away” that he originally dropped in May. The trap-ified redo had everyone in the crowd from Post Malone to Paris Hilton singing along to the still-unforgettable original chorus.
Kravitz already took home a moonperson in the Video Music Awards’ preshow, winning best rock for “Human.” (He had been nominated in the category three times previously, back when it was still called “best rock video,” but had not won it before.) It was his second overall win at the awards, following his taking home best male video at the 1993 awards for “Are You Gonna Go My Way” — which he also performed at that year’s ceremonies in his VMAs stage debut, with help from legendary Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones.
Kravitz’s history at the Video Music Awards also includes a pair of notable appearances during the 1998 VMAs. He presented best rock video to Aerosmith for their “Pink,” along with Gwen Stefani (then of No Doubt), and played guitar with Madonna for her performance of “Ray of Light” — that year’s winner for video of the year.
