The last time Lifestyle Asia spoke with Joe Shiang, he was someone who kept a very disciplined yet simple lifestyle. His hair was always kept close-cropped, his skincare routine exact, and his clothes all black. Today, I almost didn’t recognise the Joe Shiang that walked into the space of our cover shoot: his long hair is hanging loose down his neck, in a wolf cut style; there’s a little more colour in his cheeks; and an air of confidence about him. The mood board we’ve put together for his photo shoot is very different from his usual style — he’s either in bright red or sparkling silver from head to toe. He’s excited, from what I can tell.
In the murder mystery setting of our photo shoot, Joe is an anomaly. The guest who shows up unannounced yet holds such an alluring, mysterious aura that none of the existing guests dare kick him out. He channels that energy pretty easily, keeping it as closely as he can to his online persona. Online, we don’t know all that much about Joe Shiang — yet still we find ourselves watching his ‘day in a life’ videos, shopping hauls, travel vlogs, fitness updates, fashion styling videos and more. There’s something about getting only these small bits and pieces of his life that lets Joe maintain the cool, enigmatic vibe about him. But at the same time, it’s also part of his ongoing self-discovery journey.
“For me, I’m a content creator and an influencer, so I really want to influence other people,” Joe tells me when I ask about his creative direction, and how he finds what it is he’s comfortable focusing on when it comes to creating content. “And sometimes, I would ‘switch’ my position. Like, if I’m my own audience, my followers… what can I learn from Joe Shiang? Something like that. So, I would refer to my own account [at the time] and see what they can learn. Maybe they can learn something from my cooking content or, like, when I go to the gym. Maybe from what I eat in a day, or even something from my fashion sense. Skincare, beauty, makeup, how I do my makeup in my own way. I always want to try more things and do more content instead of just fashion and skincare. I don’t want to limit myself to just fashion, or just skincare. I want to do something different like cooking, and sharing what I eat in a day, healthy recipes, how I keep my body fat low and things like that.”
Lifestyle seems to be the main focus of Joe’s content right now, especially with his daily vlogs and ‘what I eat in a day’ videos. “It really depends on my schedule,” he explains, “because as a content creator, sometimes, maybe suddenly on this day I need to get ready for an event. It’s not fixed, but still I try to arrange. So usually in the morning, I wake up at, like, 8 or 9 AM, and early in the morning I have my breakfast. Then I go to the gym. After that, I might have a shoot or an event, or I hang out with friends. That’s my ‘normal’ life. But a lot of people are curious about that, you know? I always say that my daily vlog is quite boring, but my followers would say, ‘No, it’s not boring.’ That’s what they say about my life.”
That said, fashion is still a big part of who Joe is. Back in late 2023 when we had him as our LSA100 alumnus, Joe had a more slim build than he does today. He had been known for his ‘Skinny Dos & Don’ts’, meant to be a source of fashion and styling inspiration for individuals with a slender build, like himself. But he has definitely bulked up since then—and his fashion sense has changed along with his new lifestyle. In fact, this is what has opened up even more avenues for him when it comes to fashion. Only a few months ago, he made his appearance at Shanghai Fashion Week for its Fall/Winter 2026 schedule.
“It was quite, how do I say this… well, I challenged myself,” Joe muses. “I think I can say that it was stressful, but it was also very fun, that whole week. Because I’m someone who doesn’t want to keep doing the same style. So, for every look, I even tried to do my makeup and hairstyle totally different. Something I never tried before. Especially for the first look, it was very colourful and I had, like, curly hair.”
He had gone to Shanghai before, but this was his first time there for work. I wonder if he had been nervous on his way there, maybe a little jumpy to meet the celebrities there. “I was very excited actually,” he says, grinning. “Especially since this was my first time that I went to Shanghai professionally. It was really quite exciting. Yeah, I was a bit nervous at the time, but after the first show, I was like, ‘Okay I can’t wait for tomorrow’s show. And it was the same after that, I was just excited for another show. And I got to meet a lot of KOLs from China, too. It was really just very different from Malaysia. The style of everything, and the culture there. I got to learn a lot.”
It’s clear, from the way he carries himself throughout the rest of our shoot, how much Joe has learned from the people around him over the years. He’d mentioned to us previously that he was an introvert, and that had hindered him from fully expressing his authentic self to others: “I’m still working on it but having more fun with the adventure of it all.” Seeing how he is letting his emotions shine through in our shoot today, he has certainly opened himself up more.
“Back then I was very, very introverted,” Joe shares. “But now, it depends. When it’s only me, I would still become very quiet. But with friends, with people, I will become more extroverted. More confident, more extroverted. Even, like, at events, with my friends all together. I used to be very nervous, very shy. I think I’ve changed a lot.”
This can be a pretty helpful thing for other introverts — especially those who want to put themselves out there and grow the way Joe has. “I agree,” he says. “And one important lesson I’ve learned is, do whatever you want. There’s no need to care about other people and what they say. Just do whatever you want, and then choose that thing. And make sure that you really want it. Like, if you have a target, then you need to be hardworking to hit the target.”
When it comes to the rest of the year, Joe has it pretty stacked up. He’s set to go to Shanghai Fashion Week again, later in October this year. He has multiple brand shoots coming up, and he’s constantly trying to change up his style. “Recently, I tried a bit of the ‘old money’ type of dressing,” he says, as a sort of sneak peek. “Yeah, I feel like I don’t like to wear polo tees, or tight shirts with everything so much. And also now, I’m trying to get a bit buff already. So, yeah, I’m trying.” Content-wise, too, Joe has been approaching it from a more artistic point of view. “When I’m trying to shoot something with brands, I’m also trying to be more different with the style. I’ve been doing more cinematic stuff. That’s what I’ve been trying to do.”
editor-in-chief MARTIN TEO | editorial team MALLIE MARAN, MELISSA FOONG, RONN TAN | interview PUTERI YASMIN SURAYA | creative direction & styling MARO COLLECTIVE | photography & art direction NELSON CHONG | lighting BERNARD CHONG | assistant photography ZUKI & DAVID ONG | videography POR JIA JUN & BOBO HOO | makeup BERRY LOW | hair WILSON & CHEEING | location DAWA HOUSE MOONKITAA | wardrobe H&M
Note : The information in this article is accurate as of the date of publication.
