Content Creator The Smiling Afro's Favourite Part Of His Home? A Bathroom That's Been Turned Into A Home Bar

You may not know Benjamin Byrne, but you'll definitely recognise his unmissable hairdo and his matching online handle The Smiling Afro.

And after this, you may even remember the content creator, host, actor, and creative director as the dude who turned his home bathroom into a bar.

The 34-year-old, popular for his humorous TikTok content, lives in a two-storey landed property family home spanning over 2,000 sq ft. 

Taking host Hazelle Teo on a tour of his crib in the latest episode of Kaypoh Room Tours, Ben reveals his family has been living in the house since he was four, and that they paid around half a million dollars for it, a price that can get you a barely decent-sized flat these days. 

The house was initially only one-storey, but his family expanded it so his mum could execute her own design vision and make the place their own. They renovated the house six years ago, and have since done some repairs and redecoration to freshen up the space. 

The spacious house, besides being the perfect place for hosting gatherings, also affords Ben with enough space to indulge in his interests and hobbies. 

He has a corner of the living room dedicated to music, housing a standing mic and a guitar where he jams and hangs out with guests and relatives who visit. 

His favourite part of the house, however, is one that he calls a “spirit-ual area” — a fully decked-out counter bar that comes stocked with an entire selection of alcohol, a sink, and even a coffee machine. Just like the kind you’d expect to see at an actual speakeasy bar. 

Sharing about the space, Ben said: “We did the R&R six years ago, and this was one of the projects. This used to be a toilet. There was a toilet right here in the middle of the house, I think it was for fengshui reasons, and so my dad was like ‘Hey it’s blocking a lot of light [from coming in]’, so he decided to break down the toilet and he made it my project to make it into this bar.”

“[This space] was perfect because we already had the piping for the sink, and [what used to be the toilet bowl] is now my coffee area,” he added. 

His house rule? “My dad says, ‘Make sure the bar is never empty, always ready to serve,” chuckled Ben. 

Ben then showed off another of his favourite fixtures of the house — a large outdoor barbecue grill that sits in his wet kitchen. 

“This is where I can do my barbecues. I can cook for a lot of people, I really like to grill actually,” shared Ben, who also owns many chopping boards used for different meats when he hosts large groups or private dining sessions.

When asked about the challenges of living in a landed property home, Ben admitted there are “many”. 

One tip he has for people wanting to buy a landed property? Take into mind the maintenance costs. 

“There’s a lot of potential problems, so before you buy you must also [consider if] you’re willing to manage that. In a flat you don’t have to worry so much about roofing issues, but here you have a roof and it’s greatly exposed to the weather, especially for my house where there’s a lot of wood, it will expand and contract,” he explained. 

They also get bugs and pests often, and because he lives near a reservoir, he sometimes gets uninvited guests in the form of wild monkeys. 

“Monkeys will come in and raid the kitchen, so sometimes we have to call AVA to come and catch them and bring them back. I actually bought a water gun, in case they come I can scare them and chase them away,” he added. 

During the reno six years ago, Ben also sectioned off a living area on the second floor, converting it into his bedroom. 

He now has a space reflective of his lifestyle and things he loves, like speakers, music-related collectibles, car models, as well as a dedicated work area where he creates most of his content. 

“I used to share a room with my brother, but I wanted my own space. So I built a sliding door, moved my bed here, put a nice wardrobe, and bought all the shelving so I can put my personal items and make my room feel very ‘me’,” he revealed. 

Photos: Mediacorp, the.smiling.afro/ Instagram

You can watch the full episode of Kaypoh Room Tours on mewatch, or catch it below.