Yeo Tze Hern (Singapore YouTuber)

Yeo Tze Hern
Born	1993
Education	Bachelor of Communication Studies
Alma mater	Nanyang Technological University

Yeo Tze Hern (born 1993) who is more commonly known by his social media handle, YEOLO, is a Singaporean writer, YouTuber and content creator. As of August 2020, he has over 31,000 followers on Instagram, 36,000 subscribers on YouTube and 13,000 likes on Facebook. Yeo Tze Hern first made the news in 2016 for his viral video in which he made Singlish puns that were derived from IKEA's Swedish furniture names.

Background

Yeo Tze Hern was born in 1993. He is an alumnus of Temasek Junior College and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) where he graduated with a degree in Communication Studies.

Career

After graduating from NTU in 2018, he joined BLKJ, an independent marketing and advertising agency as a content specialist. He was involved as the content writer in projects such as "Inflight Amusement Guide", a five-part video series for Scoot and "Supper Club", a photo series for the ride-hailing service, Gojek.

The video thumbnail for an Inflight Amusement Guide episode. Photo from YouTube.

As of August 2020, Yeo Tze Hern is a content writer at Tribal Worldwide, a global creative agency where he writes for "Telling Stories", Tribal Worldwide’s film and content division - whose clients include the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and Public Utilities Board (PUB).

Education

Yeo Tze Hern was a student at Temasek Junior College from 2009 to 2011 where he was also a part of the drama club. Speaking in 2016 about his viral Singlish IKEA puns video, he credited his improvisational skills to his background as a drama club member in junior college. He says:

“There wasn’t a deliberate process behind it. I believe my inner Singaporean instincts kicked in and I channeled the way an ‘auntie’ or local Singaporean would shop at IKEA back at home to get the phrases I came up with.”

Tze Hern pictured in his 2016 viral IKEA video.

Tertiary studies

From 2014 to 2018, Yeo Tze Hern studied at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWSCI). He was a stellar student during his time at NTU, appearing on the Dean’s List twice in the academic years 14/15 and 15/16. To appear on the Dean’s List, students have to be in the top five per cent of their cohort and attain a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 4.50. In 2016, while in his second year of university, Yeo Tze Hern earned a three-month internship at The Hoffman Agency, a public relations firm. He did another internship at onedash22, a local film and video production house for six months in 2017 where he was an Assistant Producer. He then qualified for a six-month exchange program during his third year in NTU, taking up Advertising and Copywriting at the University of New South Wales in Australia.

Co-curricular activities

The cover page for Tze Hern's 2017 publication, The Bench Press.

Outside of academics, Yeo Tze Hern joined NTU’s Communication & Information (CI) Club, taking on the role of the marketing communications secretary. In 2017, as part of the CI Club, he interviewed and produced a video on Nur Syahidah Alim, a Singaporean paralympic archer. He also wrote The Bench Press in 2017, a book dedicated to WKWSCI’s 25th anniversary, featuring 25 individuals from the school's current cohorts and also alumni from previous student batches.

Content creator

As of August 2020, Yeo Tze Hern regularly updates his social media channels with independently produced content.

YEOLO - YouTube

Yeo Tze Hern’s YouTube channel was established on 28 October 2011. His first video, "Singlish IKEA Puns", was uploaded on 31 July 2016. As of August 2020, he has uploaded over 80 videos on his channel and garnered over three million views. His satirical videos focus on local content and controversial incidents. His most viewed video is titled “I Watched Singapore Social So You Don’t Have To” with over 292,000 views. The video is the first episode of YEOLO's eight-part series titled "Searching for Prawns" in which he reacts to all the Singapore Social episodes.

The last episode of "Searching for Prawns". Photo from YouTube.

yeolo.sg - Facebook & Instagram

Aside from regularly uploading videos on YouTube, Yeo Tze Hern is also active on Facebook and Instagram, where he posts short videos and memes. He has also made other viral videos on Facebook, such as “Spooky Szn” and “World’s Best Shopping Mall”, which have received over 5,000 and 4,000 shares respectively as of August 2020.

AAS Autoventure Ambassador (2016)

In 2016, Yeo Tze Hern won a competition organised by the Automobile Association of Singapore (AAS) and became its first Autoventure Ambassador. Participants were required to submit a short travelogue clip of themselves showing how an Autoventure trip would be better than a normal holiday. Yeo Tze Hern won with the most creative video of the competition and was flown to Taiwan for a road trip led by AAS’ car convoy team. In an interview with Highway, AAS’ lifestyle magazine, Yeo Tze Hern had this to say about his Taiwan trip:

“Going on such a driving holiday gave me the time to really enjoy the different destinations without being rushed from one place to the next, like in typical group tours. While other tourists were busy being shuttled off to other places, our Autoventure group had ample time to immerse ourselves in the culture and take in the sights.”