Revealed: Meet the larrikins behind the ‘fake tradies’ TikTok phenomenon

One of Australia’s rising TikTok stars has revealed the sweet premise behind all the fun and madness.

TikTok larrikins ‘Trips’, ‘Patto’, ‘Youngy’ and ‘Aussie’ have racked up more than two million views and thousands of followers with their irreverent stunts and sense of good-natured fun.

But there’s much more to the four mates than a Gen Z hankering for likes and affirmation.

In an exclusive interview, Sam ‘Patto’ Patterson revealed what’s next for the young business-savvy lads and the guiding philosophy propelling them to “go after it”.

The four Adelaide boys, who grew up together and have been close friends for 15 years, shot into the social media stratosphere with a set of cheeky stunts on their betheonebt1 TikTok channel, finding out how far they could push things dressed as fake tradies.

The pranksters found out you could nab a free frozen yoghurt and waltz into a cinema with little more than hi-vis clothing.

Their coup de grace, sneaking past security at the Adelaide Oval for the Adelaide Crows-Port Adelaide dust-up, has 2.2m views and more than 156,000 likes.

(From left to right) Adelaide TikTokkers 'Aussie' Edwards, Sam Patterson, Sam Young and Alex Triplow. Picture: Supplied

For Mr Patterson, the irreverence is part of their collective agreement to “go” at life with everything they’ve got.

“Our slogan is go after it because we think people should just go after what they want in life,” he said.

“Don’t worry about what other people are thinking.”

The four friends, whose real names are Aussie Edwards, Sam Young, Sam Patterson and Alex Triplow, have compiled a special book in which they list all the things they want to do in their lives.

“Everyone has those crazy ideas and dreams but they kind of just let them be, but we kind of want to chase after them and see if we can achieve as many of them as we can,” he said.

Getting on a billboard, flying in a private jet and going to the Superbowl are just some of the aspirations listed in the book.

“It’s a book that is continually growing,” he said.

“Because we are such good mates, we’re all happy to do it together.”

@betheonebt1 Replying to @Davidfootylover if you can’t tell we love the phrase LETS GO!! Legally, we had tickets to the game. #tradies #footy #crows #port ♬ All Around the World(La La La) - R3hab / A Touch of Class

Forming their own business and making a living together is also high on the list and TikTok forms a core part of that strategy.

For Mr Patterson, TikTok’s power is in how it can swiftly propel a creator from nothing into global social media stardom.

“They show anyone’s videos to a new audience,” he said.

“Tiktok has just resonated with our fans.”

They got a taste of stardom with their July stunts and now they hope to continue the momentum, build up their own brand and collaborate with others.

Their business aspirations started in 2019 with a Youtube channel, following the “influencer” model where a person or group gains a following on social media, which can then be exploited to sell goods or advertise brands.

“We thought it would be the best kind of business that suited the four of us together,” he said.

“And we did that for a couple of years on and off and then this year we just decided to swing our attention more towards TikTok because that seems to be more where the people are at.”

Mr Patterson described the TikToks as part of a “creative business” to build a unique brand out of their “go after it” philosophy.

“The new age kind of business that everyone seems to talk about,” he said.

And with their stunts, Mr Patterson said they had already received some attention from Supercheap Auto and RedBull.

But he stressed the fake tradie stunts were over.

Sam Patterson dodged security at Adelaide Oval dressed as a fake tradie. Picture: Supplied

“We can’t really top the last one (at the Adelaide Oval),” he said.

Next up, he said they planned a set of TikToks where they trade in one item for a bigger item to see how far, or how big, they can go.

“We’re filming one day at a time at the moment,” he said.

He said the group had not been contacted by the authorities over their stunts, though their behaviour edges towards exploitation.

Cinemas and yoghurt shops are businesses and pranksters taking up seats or swindling a free cup adds a cost.

Mr Patterson said Youngy and Trips had not returned to the cinema to reimburse the operator for the seats they took up.

“I think we will, but we haven’t done it yet,” he said.

Adelaide TikTokkers 'Youngy' and 'Trips' sneak into a cinema. Picture: Supplied

In a statement, Adelaide Oval Stadium Management Authority said it was “disappointing when people deliberately choose to do the wrong thing”.

“Even if they think it’s a joke, we don’t see that way,” the statement reads.

“Having said that, we have learned from this.

“It appears that the individuals entered during a staff cross over window for staff between the SANFL opener and AFL gates opening.

“This has now been rectified.”

But though a firmer view could be taken on their antics, the BeTheOne mates say they are essentially good-natured and the videos are devoid of any cruelty.

“I think because we do it in a lighthearted manner,” Mr Patterson said.

“We’re not making fun of people.”

Originally published as Revealed: Meet the larrikins behind the ‘fake tradies’ TikTok phenomenon