0:00
There you go. Yeah.
Search this video
0:02
That just That just went That just dropped in.
0:13
Hey, what's going on everybody?
0:13
For First We Feast, I'm Sean Evans and you're watching Hot Ones.
0:16
It's the show with hot questions and even hotter wings.
0:19
And today we're joined by Lenny Kravitz.
0:21
He's a four-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and one of the seminal rock artist of a generation, selling more than 40 million records worldwide over the course of his storied music career.
0:28
You can also catch him starring alongside Jennifer Lopez in the new film Shotgun Wedding, which is now available on Prime Video.
0:33
Lenny Kravitz, welcome to the show. How you doing, man? I'm doing good.
0:38
And you know why I'm doing good? Tell me.
0:41
It's a historical day in Hot Ones history.
0:43
The first time that we've ever bridged the generational divide with our guests.
0:47
Your daughter, Zoë Kravitz, did Hot Ones almost 3 years ago to the day, with ease I might add.
0:52
What's going through your mind as you prepare to take on the gauntlet?
0:56
Did you by chance reach out to her for any tips?
0:59
I watched her episode, you know, I had to study it.
1:02
I'm hoping that since we come from the same, you know, Same blood, same palate, yeah.
1:10
it's going to be all right. Over here? Yep. What are these?
1:43
That's some weird uh fake chicken. That's good. There we go. Yeah. Light. Mhm. Little uh fruitiness. Mhm.
1:58
Give you some confidence going in.
2:00
You know, I can handle this.
2:00
I can Yeah, but I but I know that there's a game to this. You do that on purpose.
2:05
The other shoe waiting for it to drop. Right.
2:08
So, your latest project, Shotgun Wedding, tells the story of a picturesque wedding ceremony that gets taken over by pirates and they turn this picturesque ceremony into a full-blown hostage crisis.
2:17
And your role is a pretty physical one from the fight scenes to the shootouts to the high-stakes parasailing.
2:23
In playing Sean, what did you find to be the most challenging thing and what was most rewarding?
2:30
Uh the most challenging thing definitely was the with the stunts.
2:34
Uh I've never done stunts before and um they had an amazing stunt team, you know, guys that worked on uh James Bond, actually The Batman as well.
2:45
So, I had to learn fight routines, do these routines up in the parachute, on water, on the boats. But it was fun. We had a great team.
2:52
It was very safe and uh very well organized. Mhm. What's on top?
3:05
It's kind of like a ranch-inspired sauce and then you get like a little tahini in there.
3:09
So, unique flavor, unique color here for our lineup. I'm waiting. Yep.
3:15
That's a smart man right there. Smart man.
3:19
Of all the guitars that you own, is there one that you describe as your holy grail either because of the backstory that it has or your sentimental attachment to it?
3:26
There's a guitar that Robert Plant gave me at the end of our tour during my Are You Gonna Go My Way tour in '93-'94.
3:37
Robert Plant opened for me, which makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.
3:43
But he had a new solo record and he wanted to go out and play for the younger generation and he gave me a beautiful Les Paul Junior uh that he signed Well, he didn't sign it, but he gave me uh this case that had a a brass plaque on it.
3:59
And it said, "To Lenny, thanks for the ride, Robert." It's very special to me. Oh, yeah.
4:05
And then off the top of your head without thinking about it too much, which song has the best guitar lick? Ever? Ever.
4:13
Wow, that's uh There's a lot.
4:16
But I would say that Purple Haze, Jimi Hendrix's is quite strong and really quite original. Donas Cadejo. Mhm. Nice little kick. Mhm.
4:42
I feel this is like first time we take kind of a step up, you know? Mhm. She's hot. Yep. Yeah. She's hot. Here we go. Here we go.
4:53
So, back in 2003, you founded a design firm, Kravitz Design, in part because you couldn't find furniture to fit your aesthetic, so decided to start making it yourself.
5:02
Who makes the best coffee tables?
5:02
Like, is there someone that you look at as like the Zeppelin of coffee tables?
5:05
I'm actually in the market for a coffee table, yeah.
5:08
Zeppelin of coffee tables.
5:08
There's a lot There's an amazing woman by the name of Gabriella Crespi, uh gentleman by the name of Willy Rizzo, uh Paul Evans.
5:19
These are some of my favorite uh designers that make really beautiful, sexy coffee tables that are art, essentially.
5:29
All right, one's got to go, design edition, all right?
5:31
So, you got to cross one off. One's got to go.
5:32
Mid-century modern, bohemian, or farmhouse?
5:39
The farmhouse have to go, then. Farmhouse aesthetic.
5:42
you're making me get rid of something. But you love of all. Absolutely.
5:45
There's There's There's There's a place for everything.
5:48
Just like the wings so far, all hitting. Mhm. All working for you.
5:53
Are you ready to move on to sauce number four? Mhm.
5:56
This is the Los Calientes Verde here in the four spot. Los Calientes. Mhm. Nice flavor. I like that.
6:12
And it's and the the heat is smooth. Love to hear that. Mhm. Smooth finish? Yeah.
6:17
Do you have a favorite sauce so far?
6:19
Um that's one of them, actually. Yeah. We'll take that. We'll take that.
6:24
the first one was nice if you want something very simple, but nice flavor.
6:29
So you have a unique perspective having grown up in New York at the birth of hip hop. Mhm.
6:34
What do you remember about the first time that you encountered it, and what was your initial reaction?
6:39
The first time I encountered hip hop was on my block in Bed-Stuy on uh Kosciusko Street.
6:47
One of our neighbors was in his front yard with two turntables, homemade speakers.
6:51
I didn't quite understand what was happening cuz he was talking about making music, but I was like, "You're playing records."
6:59
Then it happened, you know, it all clicked and I understood.
7:03
But it but it was really beautiful to before it was on the radio, before it became commercial, to see it on the block in the street with my neighbors.
7:14
Yeah, well at ground zero being in Bed-Stuy. Yeah.
7:17
So you have the Bronx, you have Brooklyn, you know, and uh so I got the Brooklyn side of it.
7:23
Another MC in the goat conversation that you're closely associated with is Jay-Z.
7:27
What would you say distinguishes his style in the studio?
7:31
Every time I've worked with him, and I know that this is the way he works in general, is there's there's no pen and paper.
7:37
He listens to the track, you know, you you put it on, you blast the track, and he sits there at the console, puts his head down, play it again, play it again, maybe two or three times, and then goes in and just gives you perfection.
7:49
It's really beautiful to watch. Oh, Brooklyn, okay. That's nice flavor, too. Mhm. Yeah.
8:03
Kind of has like a solid base, yeah.
8:05
the heat sneaks up on you, though. It's good. Woah. You like that?
8:11
Yeah, and as you said it, I felt like you ever catch a flake? You know? Oh, yeah. Inhale. Oh, yeah. And just finds a spot.
8:18
Cuz in the Bahamas, we do a lot of like for instance, we have this this dish called boiled fish, which is something that's very popular for breakfast, especially after a night out partying. Mhm.
8:28
And basically, it's this fish grouper.
8:31
And they boil it in water, onions, herbs, and different things, and they cut the peppers that go in it.
8:37
So, we have these peppers called bird peppers.
8:41
And basically, you you just take it, and you use your knife or your spoon, and you just keep scraping on the side of the bowl.
8:48
And you put it in there, and then you have those pieces that are Can come loose. pretty hardcore. Yeah.
8:55
All right, Lady Cravath, it's our favorite crime segment on our show called Explain That Gram, where we do a deep dive on our guest's Instagram, pull interesting pictures that need more context.
9:00
So, we'll show you the picture over here on the monitor, you just tell us the bigger story.
9:05
How did the music of James Brown enter your life, and what do you remember about meeting him for the first time?
9:10
So, that was at the VH1 Fashion Awards.
9:14
We did Papa's Got a Brand New Bag Together, and it was really wonderful, cuz he he knew me, but he didn't know me.
9:22
So, we did this tune, and he liked what I was doing, and we were done, uh he said, you know, if you if you keep doing this, you know, you you you you're going to get somewhere. You know?
9:34
And it was but it was really pure and really beautiful.
9:37
But the first time I saw him play live was when I was about six or seven years old at the Apollo Theater.
9:42
I still remember I still remember the way felt, the smells, the colors, everything was deep purples and and and and maroons and dark greens.
9:54
It was just like really beautiful.
9:58
And then you have like one of those like original Godfather of Soul like suits, right? How do you know that? I do.
10:06
Yeah, there's a there's a jumpsuit, a denim jumpsuit.
10:11
And that was from the Rumble in the Jungle.
10:13
With sort of black stretchy material here.
10:17
But James was wearing that outfit.
10:17
And um I got it at auction after James passed.
10:23
Can you give us a trade secret when it comes to the art of the Super Bowl halftime shows?
10:26
Like in what ways is it a uniquely singular experience for a performer?
10:31
Well, actually, they made me change my shirt.
10:34
Uh right before we were going out.
10:35
I was already in the tunnel, lined up, getting ready to go out.
10:38
And they made me change my shirt.
10:42
Why they want you to change your shirt?
10:44
Well, actually, they made me put on a shirt.
10:48
I I just I just had on the jacket, the leather jacket that you see there. I don't know.
10:52
Maybe that you know, uh they didn't want the bare chest.
10:57
They don't play with to have a problem with nips.
10:58
Yeah, they they don't play with the nipples.
10:59
They don't play with the nipples in the halftime show.
11:03
All right, one more for you.
11:05
As an avid photographer, is there a collection or a single photo you're most proud to have taken?
11:10
I was very close with a gentleman by the name of Herman Leonard who happens to be the grandfather of Zoe's friend Sky. Who was at the shoot?
11:20
Yes, you you remember obviously. yeah.
11:22
You brought her on afterwards. Mhm.
11:24
So, Herman Leonard was a master photographer who shot the jazz world.
11:31
Pictures of Dexter Gordon with the sax with all the smoke around.
11:33
Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, so forth.
11:35
And he came down and hung out with his family.
11:41
And I took the last portrait of him.
11:45
Which is very special to me and was a a great honor.
11:49
And he was just a beautiful beautiful human being. Mushroom. Mhm.
12:06
What's the mushroom part?
12:08
There's like Is mushrooms in it? Mhm.
12:10
Got some portobello portobellos in there. Well, there you go.
12:15
That just That just went That just dropped in.
12:19
The mushroom mayhem, you know.
12:22
Is there an album of yours or even a single song that you'd say went through the biggest evolution from what it started as to what it ultimately ended up becoming? Mhm.
12:31
There's always those couple of songs per record that don't happen as quickly as the others and take time because I'm very much into also the art of recording.
12:41
So, the tune might be right, but I don't like the sound of the snare drum or I don't like the sound of the bass or I want to try a different microphone on that vocal.
12:51
Um on the Are You Going to Go My Way album, there's a track called Believe that just kept going and going and going and I kept re-recording different instruments and and all, but uh everything might work and one thing then goes on top that doesn't and then it tears the whole house down below you.
13:10
So, you have to figure out which elements you want to keep and what you want to replace and that that's a whole dance, you know.
13:17
A puzzle and a sculpture at the same time. That's what it is.
13:21
Crafting, creating, making music. So, this next one Mhm. is the dream of Calypso. The dream of Calypso?
13:31
It's a Angry Goat's Dreams of Calypso. Do you like that name?
13:34
It seems like you'd like that name. Ooh. Where's that from?
13:46
It's actually from Vermont. Mhm.
13:48
Dreams of Calypso from Vermont?
13:49
Dreams of Calypso from Vermont. Woah. Mhm. Yeah. Wow. Different level.
13:59
Yeah, that's That's some dragon [ __ ] right there. Yeah, fire. We're flying. We're flying now. Yeah.
14:08
This one mellows after it after it peaks, it mellows down.
14:12
Yeah, it makes a lot of noise up front. Yeah.
14:14
But it doesn't do that thing where it's kind of just continues to build on you.
14:18
But it Okay, there it goes. Yeah, right.
14:21
There it goes to the front of the tongue now.
14:23
Just when you think you have it figured out, you know? Yeah.
14:27
What do you think you learned going to music clubs like the Odyssey?
14:28
Like how do you think that kind of like shaped your attitude as a rock star?
14:34
That was a really cool place.
14:34
That I used to sneak out at night and go there and then come back home like 5:00 in the morning and then go to school.
14:42
Um So, this is like during like summer nights and all that. car, yeah.
14:45
Which was a was a which was a whole operation stealing that car.
14:50
Um cuz I had to I had to enter my parents' room, crawl on the carpet to the side of my parents' bed on my dad's side.
14:59
There was this little closet.
15:00
I had to get in that closet and then I had to feel on the all the different shelves, get the keys, close the door, get back down on my hands and knees, crawl back out, and go.
15:12
That That took about nearly 20 minutes to steal the keys.
15:16
And then I would have to uh put the car in reverse and push and it was a the thing. Yeah, yeah.
15:20
Get out of the But I wanted to go to the Odyssey and hang out and it was incredible.
15:24
It was new wave, new romantic, music, fashion.
15:26
And uh yeah, that was kind of like a home for me for for a while.
15:39
So, this next one is the bomb beyond insanity. Mhm.
15:43
You know, sometimes I'm caught in sort of an ethical tug-of-war, like should I warn guests about this? Should I not? Right. We're just diving in. hot. Immediately. Oof.
15:58
Nothing fun about it, either.
15:58
Like, remember on the last sauce, like, "Oh, it's hot." Right.
16:02
But, you're like, "Oh, but I kind of like it. It's kind of delicious."
16:06
This, there's nothing fun about it. No. Hot on the throat. Yeah. Damn. Yeah. I know. And it doesn't stop. No.
16:20
But, I kind of dive in this. What do I got? Oh. So, this is from you.
16:28
I don't drink milk, so and I don't like fake milk.
16:31
I don't I don't like anything trying to be milk. Right, right. No imitation of milk.
16:35
I had a I had a thing about milk when I was a kid.
16:37
It's from natural lemonade over here. That one's just nasty. Mhm. Yeah.
16:46
That's not even like for food, you know what I mean? No.
16:50
That's just to [ __ ] with people. No. Yeah, exactly.
16:52
It's just for this moment in this show.
16:56
For this audience, right?
16:58
But, keeping your cool, I have to say.
17:00
Not that I should, you know, expect anything else, but It's always that. Mhm. Yeah. That's some hot sauce. You're telling me. You're telling me. You like that?
17:14
No, but I mean I don't know.
17:16
It's just uh it's like a cross that I bear at this point, you know?
17:19
Like even Zoe, when she did it 3 years ago, she went in on this one, too, you know? It just stays here.
17:25
You have found your niche, bro.
17:27
At this point, I could probably get the sauce off the table, but I choose to keep it here because of this, like for this, right?
17:33
So, when you say like, "Do you enjoy it?"
17:37
No, but for whatever reason, it does have to stay here, you know what I mean?
17:42
I don't know how to I don't know how to parse those things.
17:46
Do you have a Mount Rushmore of tropical fruits? Tropical fruits? Yeah. Uh I like you, man. Um coconut. There you go.
18:01
I I drink coconut water every day and eat coconut uh off my trees. Uh soursop.
18:08
Mm, what you what you grow outside the uh trailer?
18:11
Which is really really healthy and delicious.
18:14
Uh sugar apples, which they're not apples.
18:16
It's a it's a Caribbean fruit. Um guavas. Mangoes. That's That's it. Those are my favorites. How you feeling, bro? You know what?
18:29
I'm doing good if you're doing good. You know what I mean?
18:32
Sometimes I feel like I'm a North Star for the guests.
18:34
Now, Lenny Kravitz, I'm following.
18:37
No, but your eyes are all watery and yeah. I'm following. Okay. You know?
18:41
If you're ready to move on to the next one, I am. I am. Okay.
18:52
Okay, what does that mean?
18:52
These are These are for tacos? Tacos from hell. Mhm.
19:06
I got to go to a premiere after this. Very brave.
19:10
So, like most cool people, you've had the label thrust upon you without using it to ever describe yourself.
19:14
Do you think that there's anything that you did as a dad to embarrass Zoe as a kid?
19:17
Cuz you know, it is kind of funny to think about like kids groaning at like a rockstar parent, but ultimately that has to be a universal experience for everybody.
19:28
I still continue to embarrass her.
19:30
Um you know, it's a when she was young, you know, and and I I had to pick her up from school and things like that.
19:42
Some of the clothes that I wore, I don't think she was uh too happy with that, you know.
19:48
I think she would have liked me to blend in a little more, you know.
19:54
All right, Lenny Kravitz. What's this? Oh, what happens now? So this is the last dab.
20:02
We call it the last dab cuz it's tradition around here to put a little extra on the last wing.
20:06
You don't have to if you don't want to. Extra.
20:10
You don't have to if you don't want to.
20:11
As though that wasn't enough. All right, let's see.
20:15
Let's put a little taste. Oop, just a little bit. Here, rub it in. Yep. All right. We're doing this? Cheers, Lenny. All right, my brother. What a ride.
20:34
10 wings up and 10 wings down, Lenny Kravitz.
20:37
And to close things out, you're a musician whose music fuses everything from R&B, pop, funk, jazz, but at the end of the day, you really are like an axe-wielding rockstar in its truest form.
20:50
So to close things out, I'm curious.
20:52
Are you more optimistic or less optimistic about the next great rock renaissance?
20:59
More optimistic because there there's so many kids learning to play guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, horns, instruments, you know.
21:07
All these kids coming up and they're playing.
21:11
And they really appreciate the music that came before them.
21:14
And uh so I think in the in the years to come it will explode again.
21:23
Well, a standing ovation for Lenny Kravitz. Look at you.
21:26
Coming in here, taking on the wings of death, doing Zoë proud, the first father-daughter duo to ever take on the Hot Ones challenge.
21:33
20 wings up, 20 wings down, and now there's nothing left to do but roll out the red carpet for you.
21:39
This camera, this camera, this camera, let the people know what you have going on in your life.
21:44
What I have going on in my life?
21:44
Uh we have Shotgun Wedding which is going to start streaming on the 27th of January.
21:52
Uh I've got three albums in the can.
21:55
We're going to start releasing music uh mid-year and I'll be back for a world tour starting at the end of the year. Thank you, brother. Thank you.
22:10
Ah, that's the Hot Ones experience. That's great.
22:12
Did you have a good time?
22:13
Yeah, man, that was awesome. It was just the bomb.
22:15
But that's not even It's just It's just you feel it on your mouth, that's all. Mhm. That was good.
22:21
And now you're ready to go to this premiere.
22:23
Now you got to You got to have a pep in your step. Absolutely. That was great. Thank you for having me. Thank you. Really appreciate it. Damn.
22:35
Hot Ones fans, breaking news, the three-in-one Boneless Bites Challenge is back.
22:40
For a limited time, you can put your taste buds to the test against some of our most iconic flavors.
22:44
The classic, Los Calientes, and the peak of heat, Apollo.
22:49
But don't fret, Hot Ones fans, even when the three-in-one challenge leaves the freezer aisle, you can still pick up your favorite flavor of Hot Ones Boneless Bites. Visit hotoneschallenge.
23:00
com for more information on products and to find a store near you because it's time to bring the heat home.