Tyra Banks says her longtime boyfriend, Louis Bélanger-Martin, is a catch.
She and the Canadian businessman have been linked since 2018, and while they have mostly kept their relationship out of the limelight, he cheered her on from the sidelines when Banks co-hosted Jenna & Friends the week of April 14.
“Hi, Louis!” Banks called to him during the broadcast on April 17, at which point he made a quick cameo on camera, waving and blowing a kiss to his love.
Banks also opened up about how her dating philosophy helped her find Bélanger-Martin. She explained that in her opinion, single women should “throw the net” and date multiple people until they find “the one,” rather than casting out one fishing line at a time.
“Wait, so did you throw the net and Louis was one of the fish?” Jenna asked her.
“Louis was in the net, honey,” Banks replied.
“I was the only fish!” Bélanger-Martin quipped off camera.
Banks also shouted out her boyfriend during an interview on TODAY back in October. She thanked him for helping her work through her insecurities.
“That’s where my stuff happens — of self doubt, am I good enough, am I just a model?” she said. “My man is amazing at helping me through those moments.”
Read on to learn more about Banks’ relationship with her boyfriend, Louis Bélanger-Martin.
How Tyra Banks has opened up about her boyfriend’s support
During an interview on “The Drew Barrymore Show” in October, while discussing her return to the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show runway last year, she revealed her partner was in the studio.
“I was talking to my man about it — he’s backstage somewhere — I was saying, ‘I was walking, and normally I would walk for myself … but when I was walking on that Victoria’s Secret runway this time, I felt like everybody was inside of me. Fifty-year-old women, insecure women,’” she said.
She also revealed that her boyfriend had wanted to celebrate her 50th birthday in December 2023 with a big party.
“My man, he wanted to throw this huge 50-year-old birthday for me and I kind of found out about it,” she told People. “I let him know, I have no desire to do that. I just want to go to Disneyland with the family.”
Banks, who currently lives in Australia, shares a 9-year-old son, York, with her former partner, photographer Erik Asla.
It’s unclear whether Bélanger-Martin lives full-time in Australia with Banks and her son, but in any case, it sounds like he is closely involved with Banks’ nearest and dearest.
In fact, he once even helped Banks and her mom have an extra special vacation in Dubai by telling a little white lie about her mom’s birthday.
“OK, so my mom had a birthday many years ago, and we were in Dubai with my man, and he proceeded to say her birthday was going on for two weeks,” Banks recalled on TODAY on April 15. “And for two weeks, it was people coming in with flowers and cakes and the fire and the Champagne.”
She hid her face in mock embarrassment as she remembered the moment.
“So guilty, family,” she said. “Super guilty.”
He and Banks are business partners
Bélanger-Martin is the chief financial officer of Banks’ ice cream company, Smize & Dream.
A veteran entrepreneur, he also co-founded Groupe W, a private investment firm, in 1996. He has also served on the boards of multiple organizations, including E2IP Technologies, SONIFI Solutions and Global Eagle Entertainment, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Like Banks, Bélanger-Martin took a certificate course at Harvard Business School, completing a program called Making Corporate Boards More Effective as part of the business school’s Executive Education Program in 2013, per his LinkedIn.
Banks, meanwhile, graduated Harvard Business School’s Owner/President Management Program in 2012.
Bélanger-Martin, who is fluent in English and French, is also a certified management accountant, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Banks shot down engagement rumors in 2020
Banks sparked engagement rumors in 2020 when she was photographed with some bling on her left ring finger. However, in a September 2020 interview on “The Tamron Hall Show, Banks clarified that it wasn’t an engagement ring.
“They’re talking about the ring. I don’t even have it on right now,” she said.
The supermodel and entrepreneur went on to explain that the ring was shaped like a crab and was made of opal, not diamonds.
“It is not a crab-opal engagement ring. It is just a ring!” she said.
