Richie Koh On His “Very Tough” Days As A Trainee In China, And Why He’s Not Afraid Of Competition From Peers Like James Seah & Zhang Zetong

Though Mediacorp drama Live Your Dreams ended its run last week (you can still catch up on all episodes over on meWATCH), the starry-eyed idol-themed production is very much on our minds.

And today, we’re shining the spotlight on Mediacorp actor Richie Koh, 28, who played aspiring music producer Zhu Yong Jie in the drama.​​​​​​​

Probably more known for his roles in Jack Neo’s The Diam Diam Era and The Diam Diam Era Too, Richie got his first taste of showbiz in 2013, after finishing as the first runner up in campus talent search Hey! Gorgeous.

​​​​​​​Richie in Jack Neo's Diam Diam Era.

However, he only made his acting debut in 2017, after finishing his National Service, with a role in the army-themed drama, When Duty Calls.

Now, some four years on, Richie's done a little bit of everything, having acted in movies and TV dramas, and even bagging a role in a Chinese web movie The Legendary Detective of the Shanghai Bund (2017).

But here’s a little known fact about the Kranji Secondary School and Ngee Ann Polytechnic alum — Richie’s actually pretty familiar with life as a trainee.

Just like the eight trainees in Live Your Dreams — played by Chantalle Ng, Tasha Low, Ferlyn G, Kimberly Chia, Elizabeth Lee, Kiki Lim and Khaw Xin Lin — Richie also went through a period of grueling training.

Only, instead of training to become a pop idol, Richie flew to China for two months to hone his talents in acting, dancing and, in his words, a bit of everything in 2018.

In an interview with 8days.sg, Richie shed more light on his trainee days, and why he’s not sweating the competition when it comes to actors his age.

8DAYS: We've heard horror stories about these trainee programs. So how was it for you?

RICHIE KOH: It was a little difficult at first because you're away from home and you don't know how it's like over there. I was very, very worn out. It was very tiring, because you're training the whole day, for 12 hours. Physically, it was very draining, but mentally it was too.

You keep telling yourself that you can do it, but you have to keep that up the whole time. The physical training is already very tough on the body, so yeah. I personally feel that if you really, really, love it, and if you have the passion for it, then you will thrive. Other than that, it was really very tough. I'm not really used to the way they speak as well, since it's a little different. But you get used to it after a while.

If you had the chance to do it again, would you?

Right now... I guess I won't. The people there, they start training at the age of 13, 14, and if I go there now to start training at the age of 28... (trails off)

You're one of the few Mediacorp actors your age to have starred in both movies and dramas. How different is the experience?

It's a very big difference. If you ask me, I like to do movies more 'cos the script is shorter (laughs). Filming for movies is very fast-paced though, so you might end up with more questions since the script is so short.

Shooting a drama is fun too, because you get to play your character for a good three to four months, sometimes even longer. For some movies, you'll shoot for maybe one to three months. You get more satisfaction from filming dramas 'cos you can build more rapport with your character. For movies, sometimes it's very intense on set 'cos there's a lot of people and big equipment everywhere. There's also a bigger budget, so there's more pressure.

Would you say that dealing with the intensity of movie shoots is something that you're better with now or do you still find it daunting?

I used to find it daunting, but not so much any more. I think there are some directors that are more willing to allow you to rehearse a few times before you do the actual take. There's pressure in the sense that you're worried that the movie won't do well, but it's not as bad as, you know, Hollywood. So in that sense, shooting a drama is more relaxing lah.

Have you encountered directors who are really fierce and unforgiving?

There will definitely be directors like that. But you just have to learn how to grow [as a person] and handle the pressure. I think every industry will have people like that, it just depends on how you manage their expectations and the pressure, and how you can overcome it. Because you can't control how other people are.

So what's the best way to deal it?

You'll just have to prepare yourself as much as you can, and give your 100 per cent. I mean, if you give your all and still feel that you fell short, then it's okay lah, you just have to learn from it. There will be good and bad days. But I feel like the bad days are the ones that will eventually bring you to new heights, so I think it's okay. Just go for it, and bang the wall, and then learn from it.

There are a lot of new faces in local showbiz now, so do you feel like there’s an unspoken sense of competition between you and the other male actors your age since all of you are kind of ‘fighting’ for the same roles?

I always feel that if it's yours it's yours. If it's not, then there is no point harping over it or feeling bad about it. Just gotta work hard and shine through your work.

Where do you think you stand amongst the other male actors of your generation, like Ayden Sng, Benjamin Tan, James Seah, as well as the guys from Star Search 2019 like Zhang Zetong?

I think we all have our different style and approach [so I can’t compare]. Having competition is better than not having any. What follows in the future will be luck I guess? (Laughs)

Boybands are all the rage now. If you could form your own boyband made of other local actors, who would you pick?

I would definitely choose Jarrell [Huang] because he went to China [to compete in a competition] and he can sing. Then Herman [Keh] will be in as well, for sure, because he dances well. He posts those dancing videos on social media. And Tyler [Ten], maybe? He's tall and handsome, but hopefully he'll be agile enough to [keep up]. And hmm, Benjamin or Zetong? Whoever's more interested. (Laughs)

Photos: Richie Koh/Instagram

You can binge-watch all episodes of Live Your Dreams on meWATCH here.