Tyra Banks reveals why she ditched the US and moved to Australia with her family: ‘Dream come true’
Tyra Banks says her new life in Australia has been a “dream come true.”
The former model, 51, opened up about her move Down Under during an appearance as a guest co-host on Monday’s episode of “Today with Jenna & Friends.”
“So I have this ice cream company, SMiZE and Dream,” the former host of “America’s Next Top Model” told Jenna Bush Hager of her business venture, which she kickstarted in 2021.
“I’ve been going to Australia a lot because we were making a lot of our ice cream there in this big facility, doing our recipes.”
After realizing that her business was prospering Down Under, Banks and her partner Louis Bélanger-Martin decided to ditch Los Angeles and move to Australia full time with her son York Banks Asla, 9, whom she shares with ex Erik Asla.
“I just fell in love with it. Every time I went back, and went back … and the three countries that eat the most ice cream: America, New Zealand and Australia. So I was like, ‘I’m happy here and they love to eat some ice cream, so, are we going to do this family?’ And we did.”
During the segment, Banks shared some insight into her new life in Sydney.
“Rise and shine. Welcome to my home in Sydney, Australia. It’s 6:30 a.m., and that means it’s time to make my coffee,” she says in a clip filmed in her kitchen overlooking the Sydney Harbour.
Banks then takes a few sips of her brew before panning the camera to “one of my favorite places” — Tumbalong Park.
“People come from all over Sydney to enjoy this park,” she says in the video. “They have what we call a little mini water park. There’s swings and stuff for kids. There’s this new place that they’ve built for the bigger kids that you really can’t get your kid away from. So be careful when you come here.”
Banks then showed fans the views at Darling Harbour — a popular tourist attraction offering stunning waterfront views.
“Look at the water, so amazing. And over there is where my future ice cream dream is going to come true,” she said. “Making ice cream has been a lifelong dream of mine and it’s all happening right here in Australia. This idea is a tribute to my mama Carolyn.”
The former model also made sure to show the Sydney Opera House, calling it the “most iconic sight.”
“I think we know what that beautiful, beautiful building is right there,” she says while pointing to it. “I just saw a show there. Do you know that being in Australia, I actually go see live shows at the Opera House. It’s just like a normal thing for us to do.”
“Now the best parts of Sydney are the views, and we get to commute by ferry. This is beautiful Sydney Harbour at night,” she added.
Banks revealed that her ice cream business continues to grow so much that she’s currently in the process of opening a “3,000-square-foot flagship store” in Sydney.
“Australia has been a dream come true for me and my family,” Banks added.
In January, Banks revealed that her Los Angeles home had burned down in the devastating fires that ravaged through California.
“I lost my house,” said Banks. “I haven’t really talked about it, but, yeah, I have,” she said during an appearance on the Australian morning show “Sunrise.”
“I just didn’t want to pull a lot of attention to me,” she explained. “I feel like there’s a lot of people that need that attention, so I haven’t really talked about it, but I can’t sit here and not tell the truth that, yeah, we lost our house.”
