WARRIOR KING

Our next Manhunt Singapore 2012 Top 20 Finalist to step into our ManSA blog interview spotlight is Contestant No. 19, Edison “King” Ho. According to the Beam Artist Management official Manhunt Singapore 2012 website, “Edison goes by the nickname “Edison King” as he wishes to conquer all the obstacles in his own life. He admires warriors, he says, as they fight bravely and help their families by fighting for their country and loved ones”, which explains why his most prominent tattoo, on his arm, is of the Greek inscription for “WARRIOR”.

This 26 year old personal trainer, aptly nicknamed “King”, perhaps can best be likened to the “King of Fruits”. Why so? Like the durian, this lean and mean machine may look intimidating at first glance, with his 1.75m stature and 68kg muscle-packed tattooed physique, but is actually quite the sweet, warm and endearing nice guy at heart, once you get to know the guy on a more personal level! So without further ado, let us get you acquainted with this “Warrior King”!

Congratulations on making it to the Top 20 in Manhunt Singapore 2012! What would you like to say to your fans for their support and Facebook “Likes” that helped you make it to the finals?

I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all my fans, friends and my lovely clients. They are my strength. Without their votes, I would not be in the finals. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who have helped me in changing my life for the better over the years. Without them, I would not be who I am now. So here’s a BIG THANK YOU from me to my family, my cousin Alvin Low, my best friends Jerry Seow, Donny Tan, Daryl Ng, Zheng Sheng, Guan Xu, Issac Chia, Joshua Lim, Eugene Chng, Dennis Dela Cruz, Nazirul and Anthony!!! Never will I forget them.

In this present day and age, with the gradual acceptance and integration of the GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender) community into our society, how do you personally feel about having GLBT fans amongst your fans and supporters?

I believe the majority of my votes might actually be cast by my GLBT fans! They truly are the greatest fans one can ask for. I also do have a lot of friends who are from the GLBT community. They are all really nice people, in my personal opinion.

I’m sure your fans and supporters would definitely like to get to know you a little better on a more personal level. Can you share with us some of your favourite things?

i) What do you enjoy doing most in your spare time (and no, gym doesn’t count, ha ha ha…)?
Honestly speaking, I really don’t have that much leisure time to spare for myself with my hectic and packed schedule. But whatever little time I am able to afford to set aside for personal relaxation, I really enjoy just chilling at home by myself, watching TV, surfing the internet and munching on some healthy nuts.

ii) Any fave TV shows?
Not any TV show in particular, but my favourite channels are Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, HBO and ESPN.

iii) Any fave movies?
I am a huge fan of warrior-themed movies like “Troy”, “300”, “The Last Samurai” and “Thor”, just to name a few of my faves.

iv) What are you currently playing on your iPod/playlist?

I love trance, techno, rap and house music. In fact, most of the MP3s in my iPhone are from those music genres and I also play these tracks during my gym classes, as the fast-paced and lively tempo really helps everyone motivated and energized.

v) Any fave recipes or food? Would you say you’re a good cook?
I won't brag about being a good cook, but I can definitely whip up some simple and healthy dishes in the kitchen, such as omelette, chicken breast, salmon fish. I call them my “Edison recipes” and they taste pretty nice to me! Ha, ha, ha…

vi) What are some of your fave hangouts? (can be pubs, clubs or any place)

I used to be quite the “creature of the night”. I definitely enjoyed my night-time indulgences, and clubs and pubs were my favourite haunts. But nowadays, owing to my hectic schedule, as I often have to wake up early in the mornings, I’ve had to sacrifice my night life for the sake of work. Occasionally though, if I am able to squeeze time out of my busy lifestyle, I’d still like to hang out at places with `live’ band acts such as jazz bars, and just immerse myself in the music and atmosphere.

vii) Any fave gadgets? What is it about this gadget/s that appeals to you?

I'm not that into gadgets but I wouldn’t mind receiving the new iPad as my birthday gift. Ha, ha, ha…

viii) Could you share with us a lesser-known interesting fact about yourself?

Even though on the surface I may seem like I’m quite a solemn and serious guy, since I seldom smile for the camera when taking photos, but once you get to know me better, you’d get to see my very zany and wild side!

You look kinda familiar. Might we have seen you anywhere before?

You might have caught a glimpse of me when I was featured in an article in The New Paper when I took part in Mr Muscle Singapore 2011. I took part mainly to gain more exposure and it was my very first experience in a pageant competition!

What made you decide to take part in Manhunt Singapore 2012?

It’s my dream! It has always been my lifelong dream to be a role model to all the average joes, like my former self, and inspire as well as motivate them to unleash their inner desire to transform themselves and make a success of their lives. And I feel that joining Manhunt Singapore would help bring me one step closer to realizing this dream.

Before enrolling in this competition, what was your impression of Manhunt Singapore 2012 like? Now that you’re a finalist, has that impression changed?

Before entering the competition, I just assumed it would be like any other typical pageant. So, it was an unexpected surprise for me that through my journey on the competition thus far, it has allowed me to make so many new friends especially via Facebook, and I also got to meet so many people from various walks of life. This experience has opened my mind to realize that a pageant is not only just a pageant; it can be an enriching learning experience in more ways than one. It all depends on the mind-set with which you view the competition.

You’ve received numerous compliments on Facebook, praising your well-toned physique in the Manhunt Singapore 2012 photo shoots. Were you always this hunky since young? If not, what inspired you to build up your physique? How did you do it?

As mentioned above, I used to be an average joe. Because of being very skinny back then, I was always bullied in school and people used to put me down and disrespect me with harsh and hurtful words. That was really the lowest point in my life, as I had never ever felt so stressed out, depressed or bad about myself before. But with the support and encouragement of my cousin Alvin Low, who brought me my very first free weights (two 5kgs dumbbells), and my “Never Quit” personal mantra, I managed to pick myself up, started training up and began my transformation into the man I am today.

In addition to my “Never Quit” personal mantra, I also like striving to challenge myself to seek greater heights in life. So for instance, even though I dislike running, during my own personal workouts sessions, I would still motivate and “psyche” myself up to do my runs; and whenever I got the chance and time, I would participate in some marathons too!

There is often the impression that good looking individuals tend to shun or discriminate against others who may not be as aesthetically pleasing in looks and physique. To what extent would you agree with this statement? What is your personal stance on this issue?

Having personally been in those shoes before, it certainly was no easy feat for me going from “zero to hero”, so I totally feel for those who are being discriminated against based on judgement of their appearances or physical shortcomings. Everyone deserves the chance to make a difference in their lives and change for the better. So instead of judging or shunning them and putting them down, we should be supporting and motivating them to live their lives to the fullest. As my favourite catchphrase goes, “power is a power”! You can do it, guys!!! And especially for those of us who have been through those tough times personally, we should aspire to be role models and inspire others with our own transformation journeys! In fact, my goal to inspire more people to take control and better their lives is one of the reasons why I joined Manhunt Singapore!

On the Miss Universe and Miss World annual competitions, emphasis is often placed on promoting world peace and helping the needy who are facing issues such as hunger, poverty and sickness. If given the choice to make a difference, what social cause would you want to champion? Why?
My girlfriend is a pet groomer plus I love dogs, so as can be expected, we are both strongly against animal abuse. In the course of her work, she grew quite close to quite a few of her dog clients, so sometimes when we are free, and with the permission of the owners of course, we’d bring the dogs to Sentosa and let them play on the beach. Personally speaking, I’d really love to have a pet Golden Retriever of my own in the near future.

 Also, due to my personal experience of being bullied during my primary and secondary school years, I am all for the support of an anti-bullying movement in schools. Being really small-sized, shy, depressed and self-conscious about my appearance back then; I did not have many friends and was often on the receiving end of harsh and rough treatment from school bullies. Until one day, I decided I had enough of suffering in silence and it was up to me to make a change for the better. Hence, I wouldn’t wish the same suffering for anyone else.

As long as it is within my personal abilities, I will offer my best support and efforts in the campaigning of social causes. As cheesy as it may sound, I am pro-world peace; there is nothing more important than staying in a peaceful world.

On a closing note, were you surprised when you first learnt of this Manhunt Singapore Alumni group and were invited to join it in Facebook? How do you think the group is working out so far? Do you have any suggestion on how we can make both the alumni group as well as this blog better in time to come?

I was surprised and honoured to be invited to join the alumni group. This page is well created to help all the past and present Manhunt Singapore winners and finalists stay connected as well as form new friendships between contestants from different years of competition. I think that's really cool.

Thanks Edison, we think you’re really cool too! And through this interview, we hope that you, our ManSA blog readers, have gained a deeper and more personal insight into our “Warrior King” with a heart of gold, and perhaps be inspired and motivated by his personal metamorphosis journey to make a positive change in your life too!

Can’t get enough of our Manhunt Singapore 2012 Top 20 hunks? More sizzling interviews will be coming your way very, very soon!!!

Photos Credit:
Beam Artistes (http://www.beam.com.sg/)
Marcus Mok Photography (http://www.marcusart.net/),
Milk Photographie (http://www.milkphotographie.com/index.php),
The New Paper (http://www.tnp.sg/content/muscle-men)
and Edison's Personal Photos