TikTok's 'Kudasai Girl' coming to S'pore, hosting meet-&-greet at Sentosa on Jun. 14

Kudasaiiiiii.

Ilyda Chua | June 10, 2024, 12:17 PM

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Armed with a selfie stick, TikToker Hal Baddie, whose real name is Devin Halbal, takes to the streets of Seoul, pursued by throngs of fans.

Their rallying cry? "Kudasai!!!!!"

The content creator is known for sashaying through cities while dressed in doll-like outfits, reciting — Duolingo-style — seemingly random phrases in the native language of the country she's in.

The most popular, evidently, is "kudasai", meaning "please" in Japanese.

@hal.baddie♬ original sound - Devin Halbal

After Halbal's videos blew up, she started to host meet-and-greets with her fans whenever she's in a particular city.

She simply posts an invite on social media, and the fans mob her on the day itself, chanting her catchphrase.

@hal.baddie고려대학교♬ original sound - Devin Halbal

If you're intrigued, good news; her next destination is Singapore.

Change of plans

Halbal initially planned her meet-and-greet to take place at Speakers' Corner at Hong Lim Park.

In a Jun. 3 Instagram Story, she posted (in all four local languages, no less) that she'd be there at 5pm on Jun. 14.

Photo from Devin Halbal

But on Jun. 10, she posted an update, addressed to her Singapore followers, that she would instead be hosting her meet-and-greet at Sentosa Sensoryscape on Jun. 14 at 7pm.

"Thank you Sentosa for granting me permission," she wrote in the caption.

"Now we don't have to worry about a permit or anything being shut down. And I get to take a selfie with every single person."

There, she plans to lead the crowd in a chorus of a Singapore-specific catchphrase: "Please lah, kudasai."

@hal.baddie Replying to @Sentosa ♬ original sound - Devin Halbal

For the uninitiated, non-Singaporeans must apply for a permit before they can organise or participate in an event at Speakers' Corner.

So, it's probably just as well that Halbal — who hails from New York — will be having her meet-and-greet at Sentosa instead.

Viral videos

With 953,000 followers on TikTok at the time of publication, Halbal is quite the online sensation.

She was even interviewed by BBC News Korea after going inexplicably viral in the country.

Multiple videos showed her being followed by hordes of selfie-taking fans in everywhere from Seoul to Daegu.

@hal.baddie♬ original sound - Devin Halbal

Outside of her foreign-language catchphrases, Halbal has also gone viral for coining phrases of affirmation, like "Met Gala behaviour", which refers to being confident in what you're wearing.

But it was one video in particular that drove her to international stardom.

In the video, posted Jan. 27, she chants random Japanese words, in a distinctive singsong, while tagging on "kudasai" behind them.

"Sushi, kudasai," she said, sauntering down the street. "Ocha, kudasai."

The 15-second clip has since amassed millions of views and over 800,000 likes.

Make of that what you will.

@hal.baddieThe only words I know in Japanese.♬ original sound - Devin Halbal

Top image from Devin Halbal/TikTok