A Drunken Day in the Life of Beer-Chugging Influencers

Twenty-year-old New Zealander Kyree Goldsbury has always been a voracious drinker. He was born with an ability to chug and his tremendous water intake earned him the nickname “Fish” as a small boy — friends and family drank from glasses, but he grew up sculling straight from jugs. So, after reaching legal drinking age in New Zealand, he decided to display his skills on TikTok, chugging beers (and whatever other beverages his followers request) quicker than you can blink. Now he has more than a million followers.

In one TikTok video, Goldsbury (@thatkiwiguyy) downs three bottles of Corona in under 45 seconds, removing the caps with his teeth and employing an eye-catching “vortex” technique — spinning the liquid to create a small whirlpool all the way into his mouth. “He could get passed in three minutes,” one amazed viewer replies. Another pens a simple but reassuring “proud of you.” The majority of comments are requests for certain chuggable fluids, like McDonald’s Sprite, prune juice and a “liter of Jack Daniels.”

It seems as if everyone tunes in for their own reason. Some are studying his technique, hoping to master beer-guzzling for themselves. Others find the speed at which he downs liquid to be “satisfying.” Considering the number of requests for his next chug to be vodka, most probably just enjoy watching someone get messed up à la Shoenice, the OG booze-slamming YouTuber who amassed an audience of people who enjoy watching a dude get wasted. 

“It’s been insane,” says Goldsbury, who can’t go anywhere without being recognized as the dude who drains beverages on TikTok. But he’s not the only one — there’s an army of beer chuggers on TikTok, all of whom have a prowess for guzzling and an audience entranced by their speed.

“My journey has been very eventful,” says 26-year-old Australian Jay Selu (@Selu_Later), who’s closing in on 350,000 followers thanks to his aptitude for chugging ice-cold ales. “It’s all still very surreal to me.”

It took a while for Selu to get the popular “vortex” chugging technique down; he was drinking 24 beers every day or two for some time. Fortunately, he says, “I rarely get hungover unless I black out and have an absolutely massive night. The only negative was that I was putting on heaps of empty calories.” 

Nonetheless, Selu has managed to cut down since then and now goes through the same amount every week or two. He does, however, make sure to capture almost every brew he chugs so he can post it on TikTok down the line. “Because I’m very consistent with my technique, I’m able to make a video for almost every beer I drink,” he says.

It also helps that Selu typically sticks to light beers — almost entirely Corona — although he’ll occasionally branch out depending on what’s available.

For the most part, Goldsbury and Selu say the comments on their videos are positive and encouraging. But there are the occasional haters. “There’s a small portion of people who’ve commented on my TikTok that think it’s completely irresponsible that I drink alcohol fast and post it for millions to see,” Goldsbury tells me. They’re few and far between, but there are the occasional comments that say, “I’m really worried about your health.” Plus, TikTok has a warning on several of their videos that states, “The action in this video could result in serious injury.” 

But Goldsbury and Selu say they’re just having fun and spreading positivity, not encouraging anyone to drink irresponsibly. Sure, there are many other beer chuggers on TikTok, some of whom Goldsbury and Selu duel with to see who can guzzle faster every now and again. But wherever there’s beer, there’s someone who’ll down it, so you can’t exactly blame them for spreading the chug. “I still have a very healthy and balanced life,” Selu says. “I’m just your average, everyday Australian male who enjoys drinking beer and got very blessed by gaining a decent-sized following on TikTok.”

It doesn’t hurt that they’ve both made a little cash enjoying all those brewskis, either. “I receive a discount code for a snorkel company called Scuba Beer and receive a certain percentage of sales from those who purchase using my discount code,” Goldsbury says (Scuba Beer is a device that helps you drink quicker by providing airflow while you chug). “I’ve had both big and little companies reach out asking to do promo and such, which have been awesome — free gear.”

Selu is sponsored by Scuba Beer, too, although he says the cash is “nothing substantial.”

But neither Goldsbury nor Selu are in it for the money — they just enjoy bringing people together over their love of beer and quenching that bottomless thirst. “Beer is awesome,” Selu says. “I love getting on the beers with the boys and having a good time.”

Seems like everyone on TikTok does, too.

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Ian Lecklitner

Ian Lecklitner is a staff writer at MEL Magazine. He mostly writes about everyone's favorite things: Sex, drugs and food.