Jay Shetty & Nara Smith ON Navigating Online Criticism & Rediscovering Herself

In this episode of On Purpose, Jay Shetty welcomes Nara Aziza Smith, a model, creator, and culinary content sensation known for blending high fashion with from-scratch cooking.

She gained online popularity for her bold and extravagant looks while preparing various meals.

She opened up to Jay Shetty about her journey from Frankfurt, Germany, to the US, motherhood, and her love for fashion and cooking. She discussed how love and trust are vital for a healthy relationship and the foundation for a safe home for her children.

Grandmotherly Role Model

Nara Smith was born in South Africa and moved to Germany when she was still an infant. She told Jay Shetty that her childhood was heavily influenced by her grandmother, who instilled in her a love for cooking, reading, and music. Smith admires her grandma for her courage and authenticity; it was she who introduced the model to piano and who encouraged her to become independent and explore her creative side.

Even though her grandmother has passed, Nara Smith's fond memories keep her alive. She applies many of the lessons to her approach to motherhood. Although she died when the model was still young, the time together is crystallized in Nara Smith's core memories.

Nara Smith fondly talks about their time together and opens up to Jay Shetty about losing her. Her grandmother strongly influenced her values, both through words and through her presence and strength. Exposing the model to books and music early on helped expand her innate creativity and imagination, which is reflected in her work and family life.

A Model in the Making

Nara Smith began her modeling career at fourteen; she persistently posted on Instagram under the hashtag #WeLoveYourGenes. Due to her consistency, she was eventually discovered by IMG Models, who reached out to her. She was initially very confident and free in expressing herself, but later, insecurities surfaced because of the pressure within the industry.

Smith explained to Jay Shetty that her parents were supportive of her going down this path even at a young age, but she warns that social media has changed tremendously in the past years. The model believes that teenagers nowadays are more exposed to social media than any previous generation, which can have a long-lasting impact on their mental health.

Nara Smith and Jay Shetty agree that setting firm digital boundaries is paramount, especially when it comes to raising children. The model is doing everything in her power to shield her children from early exposure to social media, unlike how she grew up. She believes in intentional sharing and mindful content consumption and hopes to pass down these principles to her children.

Family Based on Love and Respect

Nara Smith got married young and had her first child at the age of nineteen. She opened up to Jay Shetty about her relationship with husband Lucky Smith, and how their relationship is based on shared values, honesty, and emotional readiness. Their love story moved with the speed of light, from the first time they met at Milan Fashion Week until they got married. While the public was skeptical about their relationship, she has no regrets.

Even though Nara Smith is only 23, she is very clear about what she wants in life, and especially in a relationship. She told Jay Shetty that she had always been focused on having a loving, long-term relationship and never wanted to date just for the sake of being in a relationship. She knew what she wanted from the very beginning and was fortunate to find a partner who shared similar values.

Lasting relationships rely on values and vision, not age; it’s not about who you love, but how you love each other. Nara Smith told Jay Shetty that marriage requires constant compromise, compassion, and collaboration. It's impossible to avoid conflict, especially when raising children, but what matters most is how couples handle disagreements.

Parenting Together

Nara Smith admitted to Jay Shetty that parenting together with her husband has accelerated their growth; they had to quickly learn how to communicate, share responsibilities, and support each other through unfamiliar challenges. They sought professional support to help them solidify their relationship and, in the process, internalized the importance of respecting differences in love languages and communication styles.

For Smith, marriage feels like having a best friend who challenges you to grow without judgment. She described it to Jay Shetty as “looking into a mirror”; it's humbling, sometimes uncomfortable, but ultimately transformative.

Woman in the Kitchen

Many label Nara Smith's life as traditional because she married and had children at a young age. But she refuses to be put in a box; she emphasized to Jay Shetty that, in her family, chores and childcare are shared equally. Cooking is a passion for her, not a duty. Her husband also cleans, dresses the children, and takes over responsibilities often associated with the other gender. It's not unusual for Smith to travel for work and for her husband to take over the entire household in her absence.

It frustrates Nara Smith how social media projects outdated narratives onto her. Because she presents herself cooking in a beautiful dress, people assume she’s confined to the kitchen, when in reality, it’s her passion. Although she tried to correct this narrative, the model understood that she couldn't change everyone's minds. She and Jay Shetty discussed how the public rarely views prominent figures as multifaceted individuals and tends to label them.

To maintain her peace of mind, Smith now uses two phones, one strictly for her social media content and another for her offline life. This boundary helped her stay grounded and not be constantly exposed to online comments. Nara Smith celebrates people who choose different paths, whether building careers first, traveling the world, or becoming young parents. What matters is living authentically, not conforming to labels like “traditional” or “modern.”

Healing Through Food

A lesser-known part of Nara Smith’s journey is her battle with eczema and lupus. Her health struggles were a major motivation for her to start from-scratch cooking. When her condition worsened post-partum, Smith began researching anti-inflammatory diets and carefully eliminated processed foods.

What began as a necessity evolved into a passion. Smith told Jay Shetty that her transformation had repercussions on her entire family, now ensuring that her children eat nourishing meals every single day. As someone who grew up in Germany, fresh food was the norm; preparing food at home gives you control over ingredients.

Smith is excited about the possibility of cooking from scratch for herself and her family; it is a way of connecting her to her roots, but it also challenges her creativity. Food represents both a coping mechanism and a form of art, as it nurtures her family, while at the same time allowing her to express herself.

Behind the Scenes

Nara Smith told Jay Shetty that her ASMR-like content was not a deliberate choice. When she first started out, she had her young children sleeping nearby and kept the tone low, so as not to wake them. Soon, the style became her signature in the online world. Then, dresses became part of her persona as well, since she wasn't comfortable wearing pants during pregnancy. Together, the quiet voice and fashionable outfits worn while cooking became her defining trait.

Despite speculations that she works with a team of stylists and assistants in creating her content, Nara Smith insists it’s usually just her, a tripod, and her iPhone. She and her husband manage parenting and household duties as a team, with him stepping in whenever she’s filming or needing rest due to her health conditions. The model feels deeply grateful for the flexibility to balance work and family on her terms, and for the support of her family along the way.

Fashion as a Mindset

For Nara Smith, fashion goes far beyond outward appearance. It’s a mindset. The way she dresses sets the tone for her entire day: a tailored suit when she wants to channel focus and determination, or a flowing dress when she feels light and playful. She admitted to Jay Shetty that she views wearing sweatpants as defeat, and prefers to avoid longewear altogether, because, to her, clothing is a tool to spark confidence and productivity.

One thing the model made clear to Jay Shetty was that her content aligns with who she is as a person. Her content is not meant to be imitated. On the contrary, the aim is to encourage the viewers to embrace their own style, no matter how unconventional it may seem to the world. She hopes to inspire others to live on their own terms, whether through cooking, dressing with intention, or finding joy in simple routines.

More From Jay Shetty

Listen to the entire On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast episode “Nara Smith: ‘The Comments and the Hate Got to Me. I Was Crying Every Single Day.’ The REAL Story Behind Her Viral Persona, Online Criticism & Discovering Her Self-Worth” now in the iTunes store or on Spotify. For more inspirational stories and messages like this, check out Jay’s website at jayshetty.me.