SINGAPORE: Anyone who’s seen US-based comedian Ronny Chieng would have known that it was particularly on-brand for him to call Singaporeans “a country of small island Karens.”
While some appear unhappy with his remarks, others say, “He’s not wrong.” Meanwhile, some have also praised netizens for rolling with the joke, saying it’s high time for Singaporeans “not to take ourselves too seriously.”
Chieng, who endeared himself to Singaporeans a few years ago when he made them laugh by mocking China-NBA troubles in Singaporean-accented Mandarin, last performed in Singapore in September 2023.
In a March 21 Instagram story, he wrote, “This is apropos of nothing, but it’s a mistake to listen to any Singaporeans about current affairs other than Mr Lee Kuan Yew.
They are just a country of small island Karens with main character syndrome who literally think they have all the answers despite having zero perspective on the world.
Great Chili crab, though.”
While IG stories, by design, disappear within 24 hours, the comedian’s post was screenshot and shared in a Reddit Singapore thread on the day it was posted, where it was widely commented on.
Many media outlets have also published articles about Chieng’s posts.
Surprisingly, many have taken Chieng’s post’s criticism rather well, agreeing that “Karens” exist among Singaporeans.
Over the past few years, “Karen” has become shorthand for an entitled, mostly middle-class white American woman who uses privilege to get her way, usually by complaining when things are not up to her particular standards and demanding to “talk to the manager.”
“Can’t exactly say he is wrong, though,” was one much-upvoted comment.
“+2 he’s not wrong. On my latest trip back home to SG I saw a couple of Karen meltdowns in public that proved his point,” another Reddit user replied.
“Well… even though I am a Singaporean, I’d say he’s not wrong. And if we take it too seriously… we are just proving him right. It’s just a statement by a comedian,” another observed.
In a comment to a post on Mothership, one netizen wrote, “Am so surprised And Proud of the comments here because we are learning to laugh at ourselves…our condition…and seriously, Not to take ourselves too seriously ~ and that’s the biggest chill. He got the chilli right too! …Thanks Ronny!
Chieng, 38, was born in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, but spent 10 of his schooling years in Singapore, where his mother still lives. He’s had hit comedy specials on Netflix and appeared in hit movies such as Crazy Rich Asians and Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. /TISG