What Lilly Singh Can’t Live Without

If there is a No. 1 thing I couldn’t live without in life, it’s these Listerine strips. I have a bulk supply in my house. I always have one on me. I have one in my car, one in my pocket, one on my nightstand. I take a lot of supplements throughout the day, which sometimes leave a metallic taste in my mouth. I cannot survive without a Listerine strip in my pocket. I’m also just low-key addicted to them. I have one after every meal. I have one before I go onstage. I’ll have a Listerine strip and then take a sip of ice cold water and it really hits you with that little energy boost.

One of my greatest hobbies is making ice cream. A couple years ago, someone gifted me homemade ice cream and I was like,This is the best gift I’ve ever received. So I got the Cuisinart ice cream maker and I learned how to make all these recipes. Whether it’s for someone’s birthday or someone coming to my house to visit from out of town, I make everyone their favorite flavor of ice cream. The joy it brings people — I’ve never seen people so happy to receive a gift. I call it Lil Scoops. I put them in little tubs and they’re always like, “Yo, for my birthday, can I get Lil Scoops?’ It’s become a thing.

I just made a mean mango the other day. I make a really good mint chocolate chip, and during Girl Scout–cookie season, I put Thin Mints in it. I’ve made Cookie Monster ice cream. I’ve made a fresh strawberry. My vanilla’s really good — I know this is a basic flavor, but you can really judge people by their vanilla. My coffee ice cream’s really good as well. I’ve probably made about 30 flavors by now. I can’t even eat normal ice cream at this point; if I go anywhere else, it just doesn’t hit like homemade ice cream does.

I love Tiger Balm so much that five years ago, my friends made me a birthday cake in the shape of Tiger Balm. That’s the extent to which I love it. Growing up, Tiger Balm was the remedy for literally everything.I suffer from migraines, and when I put it on my temples or my forehead or my neck, it’s one of the only things that brings me immediate relief. Also, I shoot a game show in Canada calledBattle of the Generations, which requires me to stand for a really long time in brand-new shoes, so my legs are really hurting. I use it before set, after set, before production, after production. I just embrace that I smell like a minty old grandmother, and that’s okay. Everyone on set knows it, and I’m fine with that.

Monopoly Dealis a game that me and my friends used to play growing up, and we’re still playing it well into adulthood. I’ll bring it out if we’re at a coffee shop or we’re at a restaurant waiting for our food. If I’m traveling, if I’m on a plane, if I’m in another country, I always haveMonopoly Dealon me. It’s a shorter version ofMonopoly.You know,Monopolytakes like 15 hours. This is like a 15-to-20-minute card game. It’s strategic. It’s a good break for your brain if you want to just turn off and be a child for 15 minutes.

I will also say, in case you didn’t think I was a nerd already, years ago I also dressed up as one of the cards for Halloween. Two of the best cards in the deck are “Just Say No” and “Dealbreaker” — they’re the two most powerful cards. So my friend dressed up as Dealbreaker and I was Just Say No.

I travel a lot, so I always have mycarry-on suitcaseand a backpack. I don’t use a side bag, I don’t have a purse. I’m a big fan of backpacks. Having said that, as someone who travels so much, I’m very particular and picky. I’ve really struggled to find a backpack that has everything I need, and this is the only one that has consistently met my needs. For one, there’s a drink pouch on both sides. Critical. Not all backpacks have that. The zipper is oversize, so it doesn’t get stuck and it doesn’t break. When you’re going through security and you have a million things you have to take out, I feel like they always break. It has so many compartments inside and the straps are really comfortable. And it has a strap at the back to attach to a carry-on suitcase. So it just has the perfect combination of things I need in a travel backpack. I’ve had it for probably four years now, and it’s held up. It gets thrown around a lot, but it’s strong. It’s standing the test of time.

I actually don’t playDungeons & Dragons. I’ve played it like one or two times. The die is for a different reason. One of the things I’m working on in therapy is letting go of control. I’m a really big control freak. I’m very much Type A. Everything needs to be on time; everything needs to be planned. I’m trying to get better at going with the flow and letting the universe guide some decisions. One of my friends gifted me aD&Ddie, and it’s another thing I always have in my pocket. I always have Listerine and my die. The die is for when I’m obsessing over a decision that maybe I don’t have to control. Maybe it’s what to order for dinner or what movie to watch. If I’m on the fence about calling someone, I’ll just roll the die. The other day I was recording dialogue for a project and the producer was like,Hmm, take two and take four were both really good. I was like, let’s roll the die. So I’m just using it to teach myself that it’s okay to not control everything.

My Waterpik is a newer thing I’ve discovered. I’ve been using it for the past eight, nine months. I didn’t even know what a Waterpik was, to be honest. Like everyone else, I loathe going to the dentist. They’re always like, “Do you floss?” I’m like, “I try as much as I can!” I was complaining to one of my friends, and they said I needed to get a Waterpik. So I tried one for the first time and it is just so fun and satisfying to use. When I travel I actually miss my Waterpik. It makes your mouth feel so freaking clean before bed. I struggle to go to sleep if I don’t use it now.

My Theracane is basically a giant cane-shaped plastic device that I use to hit the trigger points in my neck and back. Because when you’re by yourself at home, it’s hard to hit those points if someone’s not massaging you. If I’m starting to get a migraine, it helps me maneuver in a way where I can hit those spots. I have one in L.A. right next to my desk. I also have one in Toronto at my parents’ house because it’s not the easiest thing to travel with. But it’s a game changer if you get tension migraines and you have trigger points. It has changed my life because it actually helped me stop migraines before they happen. So it’s critical for my existence.

I just got this a few weeks ago, and I’m already so obsessed. I love slushies. One of my favorite things on the planet is a slushie from 7-Eleven. I’ve used it every day for the past two weeks, and it’s already one of my favorite things. This slushy machine, you can literally just put a can of soda in there and it turns it into a slushy. Like the other day, I just put some cans of Sprite in there. It can even make alcoholic cocktails. It’s so chic and cute, and it has brought the joy of slushies into my home.

This is truly one of my favorite partnerships because nothing makes my parents prouder, specifically my dad. Growing up, my dad collected Johnnie Walker bottles. I think in his mind it was sort of like,I made it as an immigrant in Canada.He immigrated to Canada in 1972, and as long as I can remember, he collected Johnnie Walker bottles. Family celebrations and holidays were very much centered around cracking open a bottle of Johnnie Walker. So when I did my Johnnie Walker partnership, my dad was over the moon.

Everyone who comes to my house, I’m starting to think they come only for the Johnnie Walker Blue Label. Every time my friends come over, I’m opening a bottle of Blue Label. And anytime I go to my friend’s houses, they have the Blue Label I’ve given them on display. So it’s become an important part of my community and marking special moments with my friends and family, which is really cool.