S’pore Teenager Writes Personalised Poems For Strangers Based On Prompts, Booth Located Outside MBS

Singapore Teenager Writes Personalised Poems For Strangers Based On Prompts Given To Him

With the arts scene growing in our Little Red Dot, it is not uncommon to see buskers along the streets of Singapore performing for others.

However, one teenager, Ben Wei, has chosen to busk in a slightly different manner.

Instead of playing music or singing, he sets up a booth and writes poems for strangers on a typewriter.

Strangers give teenager prompts to write personalised poems

A TikTok user recently chanced upon Ben Wei’s booth outside The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands and posted a video about the experience.

In the video, Ben Wei’s booth features a stand, with a notice introducing himself.

According to his introduction, he is a 17-year-old Literature student who writes poems based on prompts that strangers give him.

These prompts can range from a memory to a random word.

After providing him with a prompt, Ben Wei takes around 20 minutes to finish up the poem before passing it to the customer.

The OP also noted in a comment that there is no fixed price for Ben Wei’s poems and you can pay him as you wish.

Seeing the booth, the OP decided to pay Ben Wei a visit.

He then shared the typewritten poem that Ben Wei wrote for him, which was titled ‘Searching Blue’.

The OP also thanked Ben Wei for his beautiful poem and encouraged his viewers to support the teen as well.

Prompt given by OP & girlfriend

Speaking to MS News, the OP, Dylan Goh, shared that he and his girlfriend were walking around the area outside Marina Bay Sands (MBS) when they chanced upon Ben Wei’s booth.

They then approached the table to find out how it works.

Ben Wei told them that all they had to do was give him a prompt or share a story and come back after 20 minutes.

Dylan provided the word “finding/searching” while his girlfriend said “blue”, hence the title of their poem.

While there was no obligation to pay up, Dylan shared that Ben Wei was trying to sell some of his other poems to fund his travels.

Teenager writes personalised poems to create unique experience for others

In response to MS News’ queries, Ben Wei shared that the idea for a poetry booth was sparked during the Covid-19 lockdown.

He wanted to write for others instead of himself, and hoped to create “something beautiful” and “unique that people will remember”.

Furthermore, he also hopes to use this booth as a way for him to earn money.

He shared that he has always wanted to travel the world, and the money he earns from this booth brings him one step closer to his dreams.

Not only that, he finds it liberating to pay for his own things like art materials and dance lessons instead of having to rely on his parents.

Grateful to be part of tourists’ experience when visiting Singapore

Ben Wei added that one of his favourite things about the poetry booth is when people enjoy his writing.

Sometimes, he notices people crying after reading his poems. He shared that he is grateful that he “can put their emotions into words”.

He told MS News that many foreigners tend to visit his booth, and he loves it when he gets to sign “Marina Bay, Singapore” at the bottom of a poem.

Ben Wei feels as though he is able to represent Singapore in his own special way, which makes the experience all the more beautiful.

Busks whenever he has the time

Ben Wei shared that while he cannot busk regularly due to his busy school schedule, he tries to set up his booth on Friday or Saturday evenings twice a month.

Despite being so young, it is truly inspiring to see Ben Wei using his passion to leave such a great impact on others.

If you would like to support him, you can check out his Instagram page and pay him a visit when he busks at Orchard or Marina Bay.

According to his profile on the National Arts Council (NAC)’s website, he will be at the Marina Bay Waterfront Promenade – Mist Walk on 22 Apr from 9pm to 10pm and on 28 Apr from 4pm to 10pm.

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Featured image adapted from @gasolinensugar on Instagram and @thedylangoh on TikTok.