At just 22 years old, actor-philanthropist Jaden Smith is proving that giving back can be powerful and purposeful.
In 2019, he launched the “I Love You” food truck in Los Angeles, serving free vegan meals to the unhoused community of Skid Row. The concept was beautifully simple: healthy food for everyone, regardless of their circumstances.
Now, Jaden is taking that mission further with the upcoming “I Love You” restaurant. Its model is unique:
- Unhoused individuals can eat for free.
- Paying customers are encouraged to “pay it forward”, covering their own meal and helping fund a meal for someone else. “It’s for homeless people to get free food … But if you’re not homeless, not only do you have to pay, but you have to pay for more than the food’s worth so that you can pay for the person behind you.” – Jaden Smith.
This isn’t charity in the old-sense, it’s community in action.
Through his nonprofit 501 CTHREE, Jaden also helped bring clean water to Flint, Michigan with the Water Box project, showing that real change can come from creativity and compassion.
Jaden Smith is showing the world that giving back isn’t about headlines, it’s about impact. One meal, one project, one community at a time.