PUBLISHED ONSeptember 28, 2019 1:58 AMByBryan LimSingapore's food scene is so famous, it's become the perennial favourite of many international celebrities.
And there's no exception when it comes to American YouTube sensation The Try Guys.
Comprising Ned Fulmer, Eugene Lee Yang, Keith Habersberger and Zach Kornfeld, the group started out at digital media company BuzzFeed where they became internet celebrities after their video series about trying new, weird and insane things went viral.
In 2018, four years after starting their careers with BuzzFeed, the foursome made one of their riskiest gambles and parted ways with the company to form their own independent production company, 2nd Try, and launched their own YouTube channel.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9-7lUbnnBU[/embed]
More than a year later, that gamble has paid off big time, with the group amassing more than six million subscribers on YouTube, starting a podcast, writing a number-one New York Times bestselling book, and going on their comedy world tour, Legends of the Internet, with Singapore as their only stop in Asia.
At the press conference here yesterday (Sept 27), we asked them what the one thing they would like to try most in Singapore was and Eugene, 33, replied: "We really want to try the hawker centres for sure. I know that many of us have not had legitimate laksa.
"The popularity of laksa is not huge in America yet so I think we're down to have a lot of that, plus the chicken rice is going to be mind-blowing."
Keith, 32, added enthusiastically: "I just ate an entire bag of laksa-flavoured chips. I literally just ate the entire bag and I'm like, 'This is delicious! Whatever food this is based off of is incredible.' It was great.
"So, food. Food is what we will be spending most of our time here doing — eating."
What about the infamous durian though? Surely The Try Guys would be game to try the 'King of Fruits'?
"Oh, we've had durian quite a bit," Eugene replied.
Ned, 32, wagged his finger at this reporter: "Nice try, nice try."
Surprisingly, Eugene confessed to have taken a liking to durians, but only if it's been "blended into a smoothie".
Conspicuously missing from the media event, though, was fourth member 29-year-old Zach.
"We've kicked him out. Yes, we've finally said goodbye," Keith deadpanned, before clarifying that he had gone on a private retreat with his girlfriend after their show in Sydney and was unable to catch the same flight the trio was on.
But if you have a ticket to their show tonight, rest assured because he'll be there.
SINGAPORE HAS "GREAT CULTURAL DIVERSITY"
As this trip marks their first time in Singapore, they were asked what they thought of our country. After all, the film Crazy Rich Asians has given tourists a glimpse of what the island city-state has to offer, exaggerated as it may be.
While Ned mused about recreating the 'Crazy Rich Asian' experience, Keith was taken by Singapore's beauty and cleanliness, and was awestruck by how gorgeous our airport is.
Eugene, however, poked through the glamorous and opulent veneer of the cinematic interpretation of Singapore and spoke of the melting-pot culture with such gravitas that it felt as if Singapore Tourism Board should consider making him an honorary ambassador.
The self-proclaimed "old, boring Korean person" said: "I always knew that this entire area has such great cultural diversity between different Asian countries and people who have moved here.
"So, the combination of Malay, Chinese and Indian is going to be really interesting to be able to dive into because I think that's where you get some of the most beautiful experiences — not just with food, but with just the way people interact.
"No shade to being Korean though," he quipped.
FOCUS ON "IDENTITY"
As their fame grew and their reputation transcended geographical boundaries, it didn't come as a surprise when Ned revealed that "identity" forms the core of their content because it allows viewers to empathise and live vicariously through their experiences in order to relate to other communities.
He explained: "When we're trying something new that's outside of our comfort zone, we're hoping that it'll be very near and dear to someone else and that is a way to both attract a new audience and entertain them by showing a new angle on something that someone else really loves and appreciates."
On that note, how has the group — who are predominantly YouTube content creators — translated their series into a full-fledged live experience?
"We're entertainers at heart, especially me and Keith come from a live performance background, and Eugene is an amazing choreographer. So we all have these secret, hidden skills that really drive a big live show.
"We want to make it a music-comedy extravaganza with costumes and different pieces where some things are more stand-up comedy and some things are more moving, emotional dance pieces. It's really got a bit of everything," Ned said.
The trio also separately confirmed with AsiaOne that they would be hanging around town for a while and they would also be filming some food-related vlogs while they're here.
If you would like to hobnob with The Try Guys, perhaps you could scout out Newton Food Centre or Lau Pa Sat?
We hear it's where the 'Crazy Rich Asians' like to hang out.
bryanlim@asiaone.com