BY: Nick Fulton
Published 7 hours ago
Celebrities and public figures are no strangers to throwing money around in exchange for good press. In 2026, however, recording artists, actors, and content creators are finding new ways to make an impact on their communities. From viral competitions with massive donations to Zoom hangout sessions, 2026 is shaping up to be a year of creative and unexpected celebrity philanthropy.
Hang Out with SZA for Sudan
As part of a larger campaign for Freedom for Sudan, SZA announced that she is auctioning off a one-on-one fan experience. The hangout session will take place over Zoom, or in person in Los Angeles if the winner is based in Southern California.
“WE CAN DO ANYTHING!!” SZA wrote. “SING, CRY, DO YOGA, MEDITATE, TALK S—T ABOUT CURRENT EVENTS, DANCE, LISTEN TO MUSIC, BECOME BESTIES, MAKE MOOD BOARDS TOGETHER, AND PLAN FUTURE HANGOUTS!!! ALL TYPES OF S—TTT. CALL MEEEEE.”
SZA’s auction item joins several other high-profile offerings backed by The Weeknd, Olivia Rodrigo, and more. The Freedom for Sudan campaign runs from January 6 to January 12.
Kevin Hart’s Viral Charity Special
Kevin Hart teamed up with content creator MrBeast for a celebrity charity event featuring a massive prize. The collaboration is a competition among celebrity participants that ends with a $1,000,000 donation.
Competitors included Tiffany Haddish, Howie Mandel, Diplo, and more. The event featured physical challenges, cooking competitions, and a variety of creative logic games.
The competition aired on January 7 and kicked off the second season of MrBeast’s reality show, “Beast Games.”
MacKenzie Scott’s Record-Breaking Philanthropy
In 2025, author and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott gave away an astonishing $7.1 billion. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Scott’s giving is that recipients often have no idea their lives are about to change.
Without notice, Scott donated over $700 million to 15 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) last fall.
Scott has pledged to give away her entire fortune during her lifetime, a mission she continues to pursue through targeted, large-scale donations. Other notable contributions in 2025 included $90 million to Forests, People, Climate (FPC), an organization focused on reversing tropical deforestation, and $70 million to the Ocean Resilience & Climate Alliance.
The Santa We Needed All Along
Founded in 2020 by actor Indya Moore, TransSanta is a mutual-aid project that connects anonymous gift-givers with trans youth. The concept is simple, and powerful.
Trans youth write letters with wish lists of items they want and need during the holidays. Those lists become registries that donors can contribute to directly.
The gift-giving platform is still accepting donations, and registries remain available online. Donors can also support the organization directly at any time of year.
