Tyra Banks shares ‘happy’ name ‘mom’ had in mind for model

Tyra Banks is getting real about how close she came to living life with a very different name — and honestly, we can't imagine it! During the April 15 episode of Today with Jenna & Friends, the 51-year-old supermodel opened up to Jenna Bush Hager, 43, about her original would-be name and her feelings about it.

“Tell me about ‘Tyra.’ Did you like it growing up?” Bush Hager asked. Banks didn’t hold back, revealing that her iconic name wasn’t the first choice in the family brainstorming session. 

“But my mom told me that she was gonna name me ‘Kelly Banks,’” Tyra shared.

A surprised Bush Hager repeated, “Kelly Banks?” clearly trying to picture the legendary model and mogul with such a different vibe.

Banks couldn’t help but wonder, too. 

“And I wonder if I was Kelly Banks, what would I be?” she said, imagining a totally different path. 

Channeling some playful cheerleader energy, she joked, “It sounds like a cheerleader name," even spelling it out in a sing-song voice. "It feels like a happy name!”

Bush Hager pointed out that Kelly was definitely a go-to name when they were growing up, and Banks agreed, noting that girls named Kelly were usually “popular” back in the day. 

She even reminisced about Barbie dolls named Kelly — because of course they existed!

As the conversation turned to names and reinventions, Banks also spilled about the different versions of her name she tried during her early modeling career. 

“When I first started modeling, it was ‘Tyra Banks,’ and then I got to Paris and I was like, ‘I gotta take off the ‘Banks,’ so I was ‘Tyra,’” she explained.

But the single-name branding didn’t last forever. 

“And then I started acting on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and the first time I saw the credits at the end of the show, it just said ‘Tyra,’ and I thought that didn’t look professional, so I added ‘Banks’ back,” she said.

Honestly, whether she’s Tyra, Kelly, or anything in between, there’s no mistaking the energy — and the legacy — she brings.