Veteran local actor Chen Hanwei has taken on a new role as a sales livestreamer on Friday (May 1).
The 57-year-old announced in an Instagram post on April 28 that this is a new attempt and learning opportunity for him, and he looked forward to introducing health products to his audience.
“Livestreaming today is no longer just about selling products, but more like a new form of content creation,” Hanwei told Lianhe Zaobao in a recent interview.
“You can share and interact with viewers at the same time, allowing you to get a closer sense of their reactions, so it’s a pretty attractive opportunity for me.”
Hanwei’s first livestream on Friday evening drew over 110,000 views.
He also had company — several familiar faces including hosts Ryan Low and Patrick Low, as well as actors Hong Huifang, Zheng Geping and Desmond Ng, appeared in the livestream.
As the session kicked off, Hanwei appeared nervous at first, asking Ryan what he should do.
He gained more confidence after the latter encouraged him, saying that the viewership was going up.
Tearing up at one point, Hanwei said: “I am really very touched. I have been in this industry for close to 40 years and I have never changed jobs before.
“It’s not that I have left Mediacorp, but this felt like my second career… This is my new attempt, and I’ll always remember all of you who helped me.”
He also thanked everyone who had turned up to support him, adding livestream has become a motivation for him.
Hanwei also felt grounded for the first time since his mother’s death in 2024.
He also explained his new nickname Rambutan: “This name was given to me by Love 972’s listeners. I really like this name. I don’t have an English name, so the listeners named me Rambo… and since my surname is Tan, so it became Rambutan.”
The actor recently served as a guest DJ on Love 972’s morning show The Breakfast Quartet with Dennis Chew, Marcus Chin and Chen Biyu, while Mark was promoting his comedy movie Uncle Odyssey overseas.
Hanwei also shared that he is known as “Dr Tan” in Mediacorp because he frequently gives medical advice to those around him.
He said: “I had an ambition to become a doctor when I was young. But coming from a low-income family, I wasn’t able to go to university. I have been reading and learning about medicine online since I was 18.”
Hanwei said he used to feel a sense of fulfilment whenever he was able to recommend an effective health supplement to his late mum, and he hoped to continue to do so for his audience.
The actor has also done a lot of homework to get to know the products better.
Throughout the two-hour livestream, he promoted several health supplements, frequently referring to his handwritten notes and sharing his own experiences after consuming them.
“When you have health, you’d also have happiness,” Hanwei said as the livestream ended.
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yeo.shuhui@asiaone.com
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