“I’m like freaking out; this is the first time we’re really playing on home turf,” Lenny Kravitz exclaimed halfway through his epic concert at the 4th Annual Bahamas Culinary & Arts Festival, held at the Baha Mar Resort in Nassau, Bahamas, on October 24.
“This means so much to me. I don’t know if you can really comprehend. The Bahamas is my country, and I say that with the deepest of love and respect.”
Yes, the “Fly Away” singer can’t get Bahamas off his mind, and for good reason. His grandfather, Albert Roker, was a native of Andros Island in the Bahamas before immigrating to the U.S.
“I’m standing on my family’s very deep and strong shoulders of a man that at the age of nine, because he had a bedridden mother and four siblings, had to figure out how to be the man of the house and to provide for his mother and four brothers and sisters,” Kravitz emotionally shared, his guitar slung around his neck.
“He made a way for my mother, Roxie Roker, to be the first in our family to go to school.” The actress, best known for her work on the hit sitcom Good Timeswas an HBCU student; she attended Howard University.
Kravitz grew up spending summers and winters on the beautiful and lush island, and it’s a place that lives in the stillness of his heart. So much so, he bought land there in 1989 and built his primary home in Eleuthera, Bahamas. In 2023, he officially applied for Bahamian citizenship.
Continuing to share his affinity for the island archipelago he knows so well, “The Bahamas is the most special place on planet earth for me, and it is everything that I am. So, what a blessing to be here,” he declared. “I see your joy. So, we will continue our celebration of life and love and unity and inclusion by giving praise to the most high.”
Kravitz let love rule over a 90-plus-minute set at the festival. Arriving on stage at 10:24 p.m., the singer launched into a non-stop, high-octane performance, belting out his greatest hits like “American Woman,” “Are You Gonna Go My Way” and “It Ain’t Over Until It’s Over.” He and his electric band also played “Power Lines” from his 2024 album Blue Electric Light.
Kravitz’s performance was at full octane, giving the audience a reason to sing, sway, clap and feel the love—that included festival featured chef Marcus Sammuelson and event presenter, actress Tia Mowry.
Kravitz ended the night by encouraging all to “Take care of each other…love and prayers and healing love.” Those sentiments swept across the island on this very special night.
