Tyra Banks Says She Had Her First Alcoholic Drink at 50: 'I Was Like, This Is Nasty!' (Exclusive)

The former 'America's Next Top Model' host and entrepreneur opens up about celebrating her milestone birthday in Australia: 'It was so magical'

Tyra Banks celebrated her 50th birthday with her very first alcoholic drink.

The supermodel tells PEOPLE that she was excited for the milestone birthday, but celebrating with a drink “wasn’t worth it.”

“I could not wait to be 50,” says Banks. “I felt it was a rite of passage to be my true self. I like to challenge misconceptions about aging by saying, ‘Child, I’m 50!’”

The former host of America’s Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars rang in her 50th “in Australia with my family,” she says of the country where she has been living and working with boyfriend Louis Bélanger-Martin and son York Banks Asla, 8, whom she shares with ex Erik Asla.

“My mom and my best friend surprised me there, and it was so magical,” Banks continues. “We took a seaplane, had a meal in the middle of nowhere. I even had an alcoholic drink for the first time! It wasn’t worth it. I was like, ‘This is nasty!’”

Related: Tyra Banks Urges Women to Embrace the 'Natural Beauty' of Aging (Exclusive)

The model also shared that she stopped getting carded around age 40.

“Recently I went to a casino to meet friends, and at this casino you have to show ID to get through security,” Banks recalls. “There was an older gentleman next to me, I'm talking great-grandpa old, like 99. And the security guard goes, ‘Oh, you two are fine. Just go on in front of everybody. Go in.’ And I was like, 'Oh, that's 50'. I said, ‘You're not going to card me?’ He's like, ‘No, girl, you good.’”

At 50, Banks has let go of certain expectations and is embracing her age with open arms. “I’m a momma and an entrepreneur,” she says of her Smize & Dream ice cream venture. “I do Zoom meetings with no makeup and throw my wig on… 50 feels good.”

“When I was younger, in elementary school, I thought 50 was like great granny,” she continues. “I thought I would have little glasses and just have a quilt on my lap and watch soap operas all day. I was wrong. What my life is like now is totally different than what I thought. I'm poppin'. I am not insecure about myself. It feels real good.

Banks is also prioritizing comfort more and more in her wardrobe, though she claims she never “cared” much about clothes.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

“It is black from head to toe,” she says, citing Janet Jackson as her fashion inspiration. “I'm obsessed with everything black. I wear a black blazer every single day. I've got 12 of them from Zara. When I was a young girl, I went to school and I wore a uniform. I wish I can have a uniform as an adult. Yes, I was a fashion model, but I don't care about no clothes child. I could give a damn. And I said goodbye to heels about two years ago. They ain't my friend no more.”

As for advice for her younger self, Banks says she wishes she wasn’t so preoccupied with romantic relationships.

“In my twenties, I wish I knew that he wasn't worth it,” she says. “Like, why are you tripping? Why are you looking at his phone when you go to the bathroom? Why are you calling your friend and being like, ‘I broke up with him’ 15 times. What the hell? I wish I would've known that he isn't worth nothing and he's going to be trying to slide into your DMs 25 years later. I wish I would've known that. It would've saved a lot of time.”

Click here for all the exclusive stories and famous faces in PEOPLE's 2024 Beautiful Issue.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.