Arthur's Day - Guinness' 250th Anniversary!

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A week before Arthur's Day, which was celebrated in Sunway Lagoon on the 25th Sept, Arthur himself went down to greet all his fans in the local pubs around Bangsar, Sri Hartamas & Taman Tun in Kuala Lumpur. All 3 days of the weekend.

Of course he didn't ressurect from his dead - that'd be pretty creepy, but popular homegrown blogger Kenny Sia, impersonated Arthur Guinness and gave Guinness drinkers a chance to win mosh pit tickets to Arthur's Day and watch the Black Eyed Peas up close & personal.

And to win those tickets, you need to know your Guinness well. Like what colour is Guinness (hint: it's not black) and where's its origins.

This is Arthur Guinness in Souled out, Sri Hartamas. Accompanied by his 2 of 21 children - and 2 daughters of course. After 250 years, he's missed partying a hellot. Girls too - daughters too.

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This guy in Sid's pub, South Bangsar couldn't answer the 5th & final question to win a pair of mosh pit tickets - and that exact question was - "what is the colour of Guinness?". The 5 questions need to be answered within 119.5 seconds, the exact time required to pour a perfect pint of Guinness Draught.

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Homegrown blogger Kenny Sia is so popular, Arthur Guinness visited his Google mark in Bangsar Village. And he posed as Kenny Sia

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A week after Arthur Guinness painted the town black, Black Eyed Peas landed in Kuala Lumpur, to perform for their 4th time in a country laden with racial & political controversies.

Their concert was initially restricted for only non-muslims but the restriction was eventually lifted as a result of public pressure. Inspite of that, heavy guidelines were still imposed on for ex. Black Eyed Peas' dress code.

Consequently, Fergie was so covered it's like watching porn ... and the pornstars' arent undressed.

Arthur Guinness must've been disappointed but Fergie's touch was even better. After 250 years, especially.

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The meet and greet session (press conference) for the media & celebs. For the priviledged to be up close & personal with the Black Eyed Peas in Hilton Kuala Lumpur.

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While the media interviewed & took photos of the Black Eyed Peas, Sunway Lagoon was going through its final stages of setup, preparing for the biggest celebration of the decade - Arthur's Day!

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I paid a visit to Arthur's Lounge - and experiential room setup for Guinness adorers to pour their own pint of Guinness and experience for themselves, the magic of the 2 part pour.

Kenny Loh, G2 & Edmund Wong, GroupM
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The stage. Guinness black.

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8:00pm - the celebration begun. And ima zoom straight to 10:30pm where the Black Eyed Peas make their appearance. A highlight within that zoomed-through 2:30 hours was MC Hotdog - apparently a popular Taiwanese act - nothing significant to me. And that was pretty much it.

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The Black Eyed Peas came on stage and the crowd pretended that was the first act of the night - they screemed & flashed their phones. They went crazy.

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2 statues were erected - they looked like inflated structures. Background scene for BEP's performance. Pretty wicked stuff.

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Fergie came on - the crowd went nuts again. But Fergie didn't pull through - as best as she could - on Arthur's Day. She couldn't find her voice ocassionally and had to rely on the crowd during high pitches. Her eyes looked exhausted and "influenced" and she hardly took off her sunnies.

But that was being meticulous. Generally, she rocked!

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But Will I Am, completely stole the show. He too had his sunnies on, but he was far more energetic. Apparently, he flew in slightly earlier than the crew and performed in a pub in the Asian Heritage Row and night prior to his concert.

He fucking stole the show.

The crowd went wild when he spun to smell like teen spirit, nirvana.

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The 3 male peas.

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The Black Eyed Peas knew how to end their concerts with a bang - they bowed to Kuala Lumpur

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And left with amazing fireworks!

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What was also a very responsible gesture from Guinness, was the Black Eyed Peas's final message - a drive safe line. Guinness also distributed free mineral water at the exit of the concert. Kudos to Guinness!

A few years back, you'd be imagining Guinness as a beer for the uncles, drunk at coffee shops. What do you think of Guinness today?

To Arthur!

Iryne Liew, GAB. David Tan, G2