The Spiciest Tyra Banks Throwback Pics From Her Victoria's Secret Fashion Show Appearances

Angels are back on earth  — more specifically, in New York City. After a six-year hiatus, the Victoria's Secret fashion show returned in October 2024, complete with high-end models wearing tiny lingerie and huge wings. Some of the runway walkers working as Victoria's Secret angels were young and current, like Gigi and Bella Hadid, and some were vintage, plucked from the '90s and '00s to show they could still strut their stuff and bare their cleavage just as hotly as they could years ago.

Among those in the over-40 category was Tyra Banks, who made her last walk in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in 2005. In fact, that was her last runway walk for years, with the supermodel announcing she was retiring from the modeling world after that very show. At age 50, Banks closed the 2024 show by rising from the floor in a cloud of mist, then stomping down the runway wearing black leggings, a black and silver bustier, and her trademark smize. 

Banks has a long history with Victoria's Secret. As she shared on Instagram, "Within a 10 year span starting in 1995, I was the first Black Victoria's Secret contract model ever. The first Black Victoria's Secret cover model. The first Black VS model to do so many other groundbreaking things with the brand." The "America's Next Top Model" creator appeared in nine Victoria's Secret fashion shows, wowing audiences each time. There were a couple of outfits, though, that particularly caught and captured our attention with their burning-hot level of seduction. 

Sure, lingerie is meant to be enticing, seductive, and revealing, but for the 2001 Victoria's Secret fashion show, held in Bryant Park in New York City, Tyra Banks' runway look pushed the spicy envelope into top-level Scoville Scale hotness. One of her Angel looks had three different pieces, none of which did anything to cover miles of skin.

A creamy white bra was covered in tiny appliqués that fluttered outward like tiny feathers for the angel effect and pushed the ample cleavage of the former "Dancing With the Stars" host to front and center. The small panties matched the bra, but could barely be seen with the addition of a gauzy sash draped around her hips. But it's Victoria's Secret, so Banks turned up the heat by pulling down one edge to reveal a vast amount of naked hip, teasing audiences with just how low she was willing to go.

While that swath of fabric revealed so much in the front, it was strategically placed to do the opposite in the back. Shortly before her 2024 triumphant return to the Victoria's Secret runway, the first Black supermodel shared that all the minimal outfits she wore had a little extra something added. "Every single Victoria's Secret show I have ever done, my booty was covered in some kind of way," she told "Today." "That was just my kind of insecurity."

One of the most famous Victoria's Secret fashion show models of all time, it was only fitting that Tyra Banks made her last official runway walk with the lingerie company. After announcing she was retiring from modeling to focus on other endeavors, she strutted her stuff at the New York State Armory in New York City in November 2005. One of her most memorable outfits from that night was also one that showed off almost all of Banks' best assets. 

The turquoise and purple patterned satin bra was a brand staple but with rhinestones added for extra oomph. The purple string bikini panties could also be purchased in any mall across America (before Victoria's Secret closed so many stores). What made the outfit stand out, though, were the over-the-top accessories. From behind, a fluffy, fur-edged cape in a gossamer, sparkly fabric took the place of wings. There was also a plethora of emerald green jewels dripping from all of Banks' curves, drawing everyone's attention to her bare skin. 

The founder of ice-cream company Smize & Dream shared with Bazaar that her most recent Victoria's Secret fashion show success may just bring her back out of retirement. "I definitely am not doing a damn thing until I step on that Victoria's Secret runway first," Banks had declared. "I feel like my retirement happened with them, and my coming back is going to happen with Victoria's Secret, too."