Boomer theatre couple Neo Swee Lin, Lim Kay Siu sing and play ukulele on Twitch
Published on
22 Oct 2022
Published by
The Straits Times
SINGAPORE – They are known for their infectious humour and you might have seen them strutting their stuff on the theatre stage.
But you can also catch one of Singapore’s most famous thespian couples, Lim Kay Siu and Neo Swee Lin, online on live-streaming app Twitch.
There, the freelance actors sing, play the ukulele, chat and tell stories to their fans almost every day on the channel TheNeoKELELims, which combines their surnames “Neo” and “Lim” and “ukulele”, and has attracted more than 12,000 subscribers.
Their show is called the NeoKELELims Social Club and – as the name suggests – is an online social club, hosted by the stars, who are in their 50s and 60s. As Neo tells The Straits Times: “We have no kids, parents or pets. Our viewers are our family.”
It all started in 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out and live performances were cancelled.
The duo, who have been married since 1992, decided to live-stream daily on Instagram to keep in touch with extended family members and encourage one another to stay strong and get through the pandemic.
Fans joined in their cheery crusade. Soon, they found an online community happy to watch them chat, sing, eat and play games. In the early days of the pandemic, their streams were only 20 minutes long. These days, their streams can last three hours or more.
They also switched platforms a few times – from Instagram to Facebook, to music-only live-streaming platform Sessions Live – before finally settling on Twitch, which lets viewers access content easily.
Neo says: “When we started, all we knew was how to press the ‘Live’ button on Instagram. We did not know if our video was supposed to be framed as a portrait. But we learnt along the way, through our friends and online community.
“Now, our show has evolved, and we have a dedicated room in our home with a camera, external microphone and ring light to film our Twitch sessions – I think we have come a long way.”
Their shows also feature music. They perform original numbers such as Together, as well as cover songs such as the 1960s hit Something Stupid, tracks by English rock band The Beatles, and their version of the 1940s French number La Vie En Rose.
During their shows, they also read comments, discuss movies and television shows, as well as social issues and current affairs.
Their viewers, aged five to 91, come from all over the world, including the United States, Britain, India, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand. More than 12,000 people once watched their show at the same time.
Neo says: “I think many people go through similar issues during the pandemic; and by sharing, we get to support and encourage one another in ways that were not possible before the invention of social media.
“Through this platform, we have found unity and friends. Many people say they are impressed by how cheerful and happy we are on our show. But it is really a two-way street – we feed on the energy our viewers give us too.”
Lim adds: “We live in the modern age. So although there was a time when I was mistrustful of the Internet and the people one might meet online, I think we have slowly got used to communicating virtually, and realised it is not all that bad. It is actually quite wonderful.”
Among the viewers who have left an impression is a young American man living in New York, who chanced on their channel around Christmas in 2021. Back then, he was about to get married, and was discussing what to wear to the event. Now he and his wife have twins.
Some online friends have taken the connection offline, and bought tickets to see the theatre production Devil’s Cherry in June at the Pasir Panjang Power Station, which both Lim and Neo acted in.
But they have also encountered their fair share of trolls. Lim says: “We try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. But if we notice a viewer is harassing us or just trying to get us riled up, we can ban him or her or issue a ‘timeout’. Ultimately, we know he or she is doing this just to be noticed, and we don’t want his or her actions to spoil the experience for other viewers.”
They had to take a six-week break when Neo fell at home and broke her right arm in early September. After undergoing surgery to implant a metal plate in her arm, she wore a sling for a month. Although she still cannot play the ukulele, she continues to sing and chat with viewers on the show.
She says: “I am expected to fully recover in four to six months. I can see us doing this show for a while, so I can’t wait to play the ukulele again like before.”
Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.
ALL views, content, information and/or materials expressed / presented by any third party apart from Council For Third Age, belong strictly to such third party. Any such third party views, content, information and/or materials provided herein are for convenience and/or general information purposes only. Council For Third Age shall not be responsible nor liable for any injury, loss or damage whatsoever arising directly or indirectly howsoever in connection with or as a result of any person accessing or acting on any such views, content, information and/or materials. Such third party views, content, information and/or materials do not imply and shall not be construed as a representation, warranty, endorsement and/or verification by Council For Third Age in respect of such views, content, information and/or materials.
