The 29-year-old jock, who interned at YES 933 just to get “one foot into Mediacorp” and fulfil her dream of being an actress, talks to 8days.sg about her career thus far and how one revealing outfit got her into trouble with her boss.
It’s noon on a unbearably hot day in early September, and 8days.sg is with Hazelle Teo at the rooftop garden of Design Orchard to snap photos for this story.
To say the 29-year-old YES 933 jock is total pro is an understatement. Like with the flick of a switch, she turns her game face on, never whines about the heat, and gets on with work. She even suggests spots and poses to best show off her profile.
She’s wearing a brown bodycon off-shoulder dress, which she says she “specially got from Taobao for our shoot”.
She met her go-to beauty person Louise Luan earlier to get her hair and make-up done, and let’s just say with her smokey eyes and elaborate beach curls, she definitely stands out from the OL lunch crowd.
She’s not bothered by the attention, in fact, one might say she even revels in it. Like it fuels her and she nails shot after shot, her energy level never letting up.
After the shoot, when we suggest sitting down at a nearby cafe for our chat, her eyes light up and she enthusiastically chimes: “Let’s go! I could use a cup of coffee.”
"Does this look good?" she eagerly asks us while posing for her photos
Hazelle is a self-professed “extreme extrovert”. You just need one conversation with her to see why it’s an apt description.
With barely any prompting, she gives us the whole low-down of the Teo family history within the first 10 minutes of our chat. Not that we're complaining. We did say we wanted to get to know her better.
“My parents were not stay-at-home parents. They’ve been working for as long as I remember, making ends meet, and for that I’m always grateful," she tells us.
Her mum used to work in a book production company. "But the business didn't make it when the digital space took over, so she’s hopping into other jobs and trying new things, which I think is great!" she says.
Her dad is a machine operator in a plastic manufacturing company and has been in the same job since Hazelle was four.
"I don’t know how he does that. People of their generation really think in a different way. His working hours are like 8am to 8pm, since 30 years ago, but he’s never complained. I’m sure he’s learnt all he has to, and there’s no progression in his role, but his bond with his colleagues makes him want to stay,” she says, her voice brimming with admiration for her dad.
Hazelle is a middle child and has a younger brother and an older sister. If you follow her on Instagram, you would know she’s a doting aunt to her brother’s two-year-old daughter, Keira, whom she describes as her “forever baby”.
“My brother was the first to get married even though he’s the youngest. He’s been with his childhood sweetheart for 14 years — they met in secondary school. Sometimes I look at them and I think of my own relationships. Like, ‘What the hell have I been doing wrong, man’," she laughs.
She adds: “My elder sister is getting married soon and I’m very happy for her. She’s a gamer, both my siblings are. Sometimes, I feel like the odd one out, because the only game I have on my phone is Sudoku. They roll their eyes at me, but yeah, they like to play Mobile Legends and games like that, and I guess that’s how they bond.”
What about her own dating life? Do her parents rush her to settle down?
Hazelle, who tells us she's fresh out of a relationship with someone who is not in showbiz, says: “Honestly, I don’t think my parents have ever been worried about my dating life. My bro has only been with one girl his whole life, and my sis has always been the 'loyal type' — her previous relationships usually lasted five to seven years. For me, I feel like if I haven’t found the right one, there’s no point dragging it out or delaying things. I think my parents know that I like to take things in my own hands and in my own time.”
The 29 year old much prefers to take her own time when it comes to settling downAnother thing we wanted to know is how Hazelle got into showbiz. Her origin story, so to speak.
“After graduating from Jurong Junior College, I chose to go to NUS. I really liked the Arts and Social Sciences faculty ‘cos they had theatre studies. I’ve wanted to be an actress since the age of 14. Of course I could go to SOTA or Lasalle, but my parents felt university was a more practical decision," she says.
Although theatre studies was Hazelle’s major, she did a communications and media module and “fell in love with it”. She has so much fun in class, she decided to pursue it as a second major.
“I graduated half a year later than everybody else because of that decision, but I have no regrets,” she smiles.
22-year-old Hazelle at The Sound Makers competition in 2016
8DAYS.SG: How did your dream of being an actress come about?
Hazelle Teo: I had a role model I looked up to: Rainie Yang. When I was 14, Taiwanese dramas were huge, and I watched a lot of Rainie Yang dramas and I really wanted to be like her.
Back then, I was working at McDonald’s. One day, I was just cooking fries, when I told my colleague, “I want to be an actress one day and be like Rainie Yang.” She took a good look at me and said, "Aiyah, I’ve had dreams of being a star too. It won’t happen" and she walked away.
There’s some truth in what she said. In an environment like Singapore, how can you make that work? I chewed on her words and decided to find any openings to make my dream come true. I joined this Facebook group called ‘Casting Calls Singapore’. Basically, production companies that require extras would post their requirements, and interested parties can apply. Out of 50 resumes you send, you would be lucky to even land one.
My most memorable experience was when I starred in SG 50 movie Seven Letters. It's an anthology film and I was in GPS, the short story directed by Kelvin Tong. Guess who my parents were? Hong Huifang and Zheng Geping! That was the first time I acted with them. It’s so funny ‘cos now I’m such good friends with [their children] Tay Ying and Calvert. I think I landed that role because of my limited ability to speak Hokkien. I’m not very good at it but I can speak a little Hokkien ‘cos I grew up with my grandma. But yes, fate works in funny ways.
That was a good experience. It gave me a good look into what acting is like. I realised 'Wah, actors have to wait so long on set one ah?' (Laughs)
https://www.8days.sg/entertainment/...nnabe-actress-radio-hottest-voice-face-820286
