Nat, however, won’t be doing that anytime soon, even though his school is temporarily closed in light of the virus. “My mum did ask me if I want to make arrangements to go back since all my lessons are online now, but my finals are this week and all my music equipment is here,” he explained. “Plus, the thought of having to wake up at odd hours just to ‘go to school’ is just ridiculous.”

Another major reason he’s staying on is because he intends to apply for a visa that will allow him to work in America after he completes his course, so it’s not advisable for him to leave the country during the processing time.

“Originally, I wanted to go back to Singapore in July,” he said. “But with the visa and the virus, my concern is that if I leave, I don’t know if I will even be allowed to enter the States again.”

But yes, back to Nat’s supposedly laughable survival strategy. Spoiler alert: it’s not funny at all — in fact, it’s actually pretty genius. “Last night, I went online and bought a whole bunch of plants and seeds, so if food really runs out, at least I can grow my own food and sustain myself for a little longer.”

Not a bad idea, right? And his little garden, which is on the balcony of his apartment, is shaping up to have quite the variety, with seed potatoes, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, okra, bok choy, several types of beans, and even lemons. He’s also been garnishing his cooking with his own homegrown herbs, such as rosemary and oregano.

This is quite the improvement from someone who readily confesses that he used to have a black thumb. According to Nat, he first became drawn to gardening a few years ago when he was going through an emotionally tough time, which he says is “bizarre” 'cos “you’re talking to the kind of person who could kill a cactus. Twice!”

True story: he over-watered his first cactus until it swelled and burst, and his second cactus, believe it or not, died of dehydration. Thankfully (for his crops), Nat’s thumb has gotten a little greener. “I wouldn’t say I’m super good at gardening now, but at least my plants are no longer dying!”

8 DAYS: Hey Nat! Sorry, we know it’s late there. What time is it in LA now?
NAT HO: It’s 11.48pm, and don’t worry about it, I’m used to getting two to three hours of sleep because of school assignments. (Laughs) The workload can be pretty intense but it’s a lot better now. I don’t have as much experience in music production as my classmates, so what I lack in proficiency, I make up for with lack of sleep. (Laughs) [Ed: He’s doing really well so far, scoring a 3.79 GPA for his first quarter and 3.81 GPA for his second semester.]

Luckily I’ve got my ketones [drink]. Eh, really! I chug that s*** when I have to get things done, and it is 100 per cent better than energy drinks, which are full of sugar and give you a high before crashing down. [Ed: Nat is involved in a US health company called Pruvit, which specialises in products that supplement the ketogenic diet.]

Do you worry about slowing your classmates down since you’re not as experienced in music production as them?
Not at all. The good thing is that we all come from different backgrounds, so they might be good at something I’m weak in and vice versa, so in that sense, we balance each other out. And while I can’t speak for other classes, the lovely thing about my class is that there is a very friendly and collaborative environment. We can be competitive, but we’re not out to kill each other. We’re coming to a year of school and we’re all pretty bonded by now.

How has the outbreak affected your student life?
Well, school had to be shut down and all our lessons were shifted online, which is a pretty big bummer. Firstly, this week is my finals week, and I’m also about to start my final quarter of the course, and a large part of that involves a collaboration project which would be pretty hard to do online as we’re supposed to come up with a three-song EP, so we’ll need a studio space and everything which are all in school.

At the same time, we paid for the full LA programme, which is more expensive than the online programme, but now we’re essentially doing the online programme. Although to be fair, the school has adapted to the situation and said that our curriculum is more interactive because we have our lessons via a live stream, while students in the online course just listen to pre-recorded videos. It’s still not ideal, but nobody could have anticipated this and we’re all just doing the best we can.

What about your everyday life? Are you going out less?
To be honest, there hasn’t been that much of a difference. If you talk to any music producer, you’d know that they spend a lot of time in their dens. I’ve also been very prudent with my money: if I’m not in school, then I’m at the gym. If I’m not at the gym, then I’m at home working on my projects. Occasionally, if my friends are in town, then I’d go out with them or bring them hiking 'cos that’s free.

Aside from that, I’m actually pretty okay with just staying home all day because I’m an introvert and I feel content just being on my computer. There are so many online services nowadays, and I’m a bit of an Amazon addict, to be honest. (Laughs)

From your perspective, what’s the overall reaction to COVID-19 over there in the States?
Initially I think people weren’t taking it seriously enough, but now it’s kinda split into two camps: some people think it’s all one big hoax or cover-up to try and take away their freedom, but at the same time, there are others who are panic-buying. Kiasu-ism isn’t unique to Singapore, let’s put it that way. My housemate works in Costco and he says it’s been really crazy because all the toilet paper and water are sold out. The shelves were totally cleared out. I was pretty lucky because I got my groceries online just two days before the emergency announcement.

Then there’s another extreme group of Americans who have started buying guns. When I told my friends they were like, “Huh? Do they think guns can kill the virus?” But it’s not that. They’re afraid that if this thing stretches out for too long, society could break down and there might be robberies and fights over food. And it’s pretty worrying to think about people, who might still believe that this is an “Asian virus” or whatever, having access to a gun and being so scared and angry that they’d take it out on anybody.

Yikes. Have you thought of getting a gun yourself?
I don’t know if I can because I don’t have a licence. I have some other Asian friends who are anti-gun, but even they are considering getting one just for self-defense. My housemate is thinking of getting one too, so even if I don’t have one, at least we’d have something in the house. [Ed: Nat used to be housemates with fellow Singapore Idol alumnus Daphne Khoo, but she’s moving back to Singapore.]

Have you faced any sort of racial discrimination since you started living in the States?
No. I’ve been very fortunate so far because I live in California, where there’s a very large Asian community. Of course, it’s still prudent to exercise caution, but at the same time, life has to go on. Interestingly, before coming here, I was a little worried because LA is known to be a city that can kinda chew you and then spit you out, but I have to say, LA has been incredibly kind to me.

Photos: Nat Ho/Instagram