They say if you can make it in New York City, you can make it anywhere.
But does the adage hold true when you’re stripped of the creature comforts of home, marooned on a deserted island and forced to fend for yourself while competing in increasingly difficult challenges of strength, wit and endurance all while avoiding being voted off the island by your fellow castaways?
Over the last 26 years, dozens of New Yorkers have competed on “Survivor,” and while their results have varied, a significant portion of the city dwellers have managed to outwit, outplay and outlast the competition long enough to secure a spot at Final Tribal Council, including Courtney Yates (“Survivor: China”), Jessica “Sugar” Kipper (“Survivor: Gabon”) and Stephen Fishbach (“Survivor: Tocantins”).
A select few have even managed to win the title of “Sole Survivor” on their season of the longrunning reality competition series, including Tom Westman (“Survivor: Palau”), Tommy Sheehan (“Survivor: Island of the Idols”) and Kyle Fraser (“Survivor 48”).
Speaking to Secret NYC at the Paley Museum’s “The Tribe Has Spoken: An Evening with Jeff Probst and Survivor 50 Castaways” event on March 10, Jeff Probst and the native New Yorkers competing on the show’s milestone 50th season – Kyle Fraser, Cirie Fields and Rizo Velovic – opened up about what makes the city’s residents so good at succeeding on “Survivor.”
Jeff Probst Says New Yorker’s ‘Grit’ Helps Them Succeed on ‘Survivor’
GettyAfter hosting “Survivor” for the last 26 years, Jeff Probst has seen as many as 750 players from every walk of life, hailing from every corner of the United States (and Canada) converge on the island in hopes of walking away with the title of “Sole Survivor” and the $1 million grand prize that comes with it.
With a veritable encyclopedic knowledge of the franchise and its players, Probst told Secret NYC, “East Coast people, in general, tend to do really well on ‘Survivor.’”
Speaking specifically about New York City, the 64-year-old host added, “There’s something about the grit required to make it in a city like Manhattan, and I think it does translate into the island because you realize, ‘This ain’t that big of a deal. I’ve been through the snow in New York. I’m okay.’”
The Wichita, Kansas native’s comments about NYC’s bitter winter weather were no doubt in reference to the fact that several “Survivor 50” premiere events in the city were cancelled last month after Storm Hernando pummeled the metropolitan area with blizzard-like conditions.
Cirie Fields Calls NYC an Ideal ‘Training Ground’ for Castaways
GettyDespite living the majority of her life in Jersey City, five-time castaway Cirie Fields was actually born across state lines in Brooklyn, New York.
According to Fields – widely considered to be the greatest player to never win the game – “New Yorkers have the advantage” when it comes to succeeding on “Survivor.”
“New York City is a melting pot of every nationality, every ethnicity, every religious denomination,” the 55-year-old nurse told Secret NYC. “It’s like the training ground for ‘Survivor.’”
“You gotta deal with rude people, you gotta deal with happy people, you gotta deal with mean people, you gotta deal with kind people. And that’s what you encounter on the island,” she continued. “It’s like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.”
Rizo Velovic Talks Bringing a New York State of Mind to ‘Survivor’
GettyThe eldest son of two Albanian immigrants, “Survivor 49” finalist knows just how hard it is to succeed in New York City.
Based in Yonkers, the 25-year-old tech sales associate spent his teenage years helping to raise his younger brother and filing his parents taxes while they both worked multiple jobs to put food on the table.
As a result, Velovic has come to embody a truly unique “New York State of Mind.”
“New York’s big lingo is ‘FITFO,’ right?” he told Secret NYC. “Figure it the F out.”
“That’s literally what ‘Survivor’ is,” he added.
The mantra was instrumental to helping Rizo – better known by his self-proclaimed nickname “Rizgod” – secure a spot in the Final 4 of his original “Survivor” season. It remains to be seen, however, if the state of mind will help him replicate the success on “Survivor 50.”
Kyle Fraser Says New York Living Teaches Castaways to be ‘Sneaky’
GettyDespite his devastating medical evacuation on the season premiere of “Survivor 50,” Kyle Fraser told Secret NYC that being a Bronxville native was instrumental in helping him win on his original season.
“I think New Yorkers have an advantage because one thing people don’t realize is [that] ‘Survivor’ is a mind-your-business game,” he said. “You gotta be nosy, but you gotta be sneaky about it. In New York, if you want to see what’s going on, you can’t broadcast that to people, you can’t be staring – you give a little side-eye, you peek and go. It’s a mind-your-business town, but New Yorkers know how to get in business sneakily.”
Fraser’s own sneaky sensibilities helped him maintain a season-long secret alliance with co-star Kamilla Karthigesu, a relationship that helped him walk away from the competition $1 million richer.
Check out the “Survivor 50” cast’s full interview with Secret NYC below!
