Ruling the airwaves

JENTZEN Lim’s flair for languages has been his ticket to success in the entertainment industry. At ease with English, Mandarin, Cantonese and Hokkien, his broadcasting career quickly took off in 2004 when he rode the wave at a Chinese radio station, Melody FM.

In 2006, he expanded his repertoire by hosting television shows in Cantonese.

While his first year as a TV host was a momentous change, his career route took a drastic but satisfying turn the following year.

He was selected to be part of an inaugural team to launch Astro’s Hokkien-themed TV channel.

Drawing on similarities between his formative tenure as an editor with a magazine prior to hosting on TV and radio, Jentzen said: “The habit of structuring content in my mind is so deeply ingrained that it comes naturally when I’m hosting on TV or radio, regardless of what the script is.

“And because of my education background in advertising and copywriting, understanding words, be it spoken or written, is an innate trait that I have been able to hone over the years.”

However, in the past year and a half, his career as an event emcee has been siderailed by the pandemic.

“On a personal level, I’ve adjusted to it pretty well.

“It’s common to hear people expressing how frustrated they are being cooped up at home during the lockdown, but I really enjoy staying at home most of the time. I’m a homebody. Spending time at home with family is a luxury when you’re constantly busy with work.”