Jaden

Jaden Christopher Syre Smith has forged a distinctive path as an American actor, philanthropist, rapper, and fashion designer whose inventive fusion of alternative hip-hop appeals equally to rap enthusiasts and rock audiences. Although he first gained visibility through screen roles alongside his father Will Smith, the Malibu native broadened his creative output during the 2010s by venturing into alternative rap, releasing several installments in his Cool Tape series and achieving his full-length debut with Syre, whose platinum-certified single “Icon” propelled him forward. In 2019 he placed at number 12 on the Billboard 200 with ERYS, then concluded the mixtape trilogy in 2020 via CTV3: Cool Tape Vol. 3.

Born in Malibu, California, to Jada Pinkett and Will Smith, he made his earliest film appearance in his father’s 2006 drama The Pursuit of Happyness and reunited with Will for the 2013 sci-fi feature After Earth. Additional cinema credits include the remakes of The Day the Earth Stood Still and The Karate Kid, the latter opposite Jackie Chan. Following his parents’ example, he soon entered music, first joining Justin Bieber on the 2010 track “Never Say Never.” Two years later he delivered his debut mixtape, The Cool Cafe: Cool Tape, Vol. 1, an atmospheric rap/R&B project shaped by Kid Cudi and Purity Ring that included contributions from OmArr, T-Coles, Josiah Bell, AcE, and his sister Willow. A follow-up, CTV2, surfaced in 2014 and spotlighted the single “PCH.”

Beyond acting in the series The Get Down as Marcus “Dizzee” Kipling in 2016, Smith supplied two tracks to its soundtrack. The 2017 singles “Watch Me,” recalling Kid Cudi, and the trap-rap cut “Batman” both appeared on his Roc Nation album SYRE, which also hosted A$AP Rocky on “Breakfast” and Raury on “Falcon.” The single “Icon” gained viral traction, reaching the Top Three on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart, while Smith toured the United States that year alongside Blackbear and Fall Out Boy.

In 2018 he released the sophomore set Syre: The Electric Album, featuring the Lil Pump-indebted trap number “Ghost” with Christian Rich, and added another chapter to his Cool Tape project titled The Sunset Tapes: A Cool Tape Story. After issuing the preview EP Erys Is Coming, he unveiled the edgy official follow-up ERYS the next year; the emotive album debuted just outside the Billboard 200’s Top Ten and welcomed guests Tyler, The Creator, Kid Cudi, A$AP Rocky, Trinidad James, Lido, and Willow.

Outside music and film, Jaden co-founded the environmentally focused water brand JUST Water and, through his charity JUST Goods, collaborated with a church in Flint, Michigan, to introduce a mobile water-filtration system aimed at reducing lead and other contaminants. He also established the clothing label MSFTSrep and served as the face of Louis Vuitton’s spring and summer collections in 2016. Returning to music in July 2020, he offered the track “Cabin Fever,” which landed on his third full-length effort, CTV3: Cool Tape Vol. 3; the trilogy’s final volume included the Justin Bieber collaboration “Falling for You.” The single “Bye” followed in 2021 and was later added to a deluxe edition of CTV3 titled the Day Tripper’s Edition. Jaden resurfaced in 2024 with the single “Roses.”