Handsome Boy Modeling School | |
|---|---|
 Handsome Boy Modeling School performing in New York City in 2005. | |
| Background information | |
| Genres | Hip hop,trip hop,electronica |
| Years active | 1999–2006, 2018–present |
| Labels | Tommy Boy,Elektra |
| Members | |
Handsome Boy Modeling School is an American collaborative project betweenhip hopproducersDan the Automator (Gorillaz,Dr. Octagon,Deltron 3030) andPrince Paul (Stetsasonic,De La Soul,Gravediggaz). The collaboration originally lasted from 1999 to 2006 and resulted in two albums, featuring a vast cast of guest rappers, singers, comedians and DJs.[1] In February 2018, the duo played a concert in New York City.[2]
Handsome Boy Modeling School is a conceptual hip hop duo that parodied and acted as a commentary onvain,consumerist,materialistic, andself-absorbed members ofupper class society, such assupermodels and people fromold money. The pair often satirize upper classsnobbery and perceived beauty.
In 1999, they released theconcept albumSo... How's Your Girl?, loosely based on "The Prettiest Week of My Life", an episode of thesitcomGet a Life starringChris Elliott. The episode contains the origin of the name Handsome Boy Modeling School, where Chris Elliott's character enrolls to become amale model. In the album, Dan and Paul assume the characters of Nathaniel Merriweather and Chest Rockwell, respectively. The Rockwell name is in reference to a pseudonym used by a porn star in 1997 filmBoogie Nights; the Merriweather name is likely an homage to the character Nathaniel Mayweather, also played by Chris Elliott, in the 1994 comedic featureCabin Boy.[3] Dan the Automator continued to use the pseudonym Nathaniel Merriweather alongside Mike Patton andJennifer Charles for the collaborative projectLovage.
A number of guest musicians appear, includingRóisín Murphy (one half of the duoMoloko at the time of the album's release),DJ Shadow,Del the Funky Homosapien,J-Live,Sean Lennon,Miho Hatori (ofCibo Matto),Mike D (of theBeastie Boys) andDon Novello (as comic characterFather Guido Sarducci).[3]
Their 1999 single "The Projects" in collaboration withDave ofDe La Soul and Del the Funky Homosapien was featured in the 2001 filmOcean's Eleven.[4]
Their second album,White People, was released in November 2004. Some collaborators from the first album returned, and new collaborators includedRZA,Cat Power,Casual,Alex Kapranos ofFranz Ferdinand,Chester Bennington andMike Shinoda ofLinkin Park,Jack Johnson,Cedric Bixler-Zavala ofThe Mars Volta,Mike Patton,El-P,Pharrell,John Oates,Chino Moreno,Lord Finesse,Black Sheep, and comedy actorTim Meadows.[5]
In 2006, Prince Paul announced his retirement from Handsome Boy Modeling School due to business conflicts with Dan the Automator.[6] However, the duo reunited to play a concert hosted bySaks Fifth Avenue, New York City, on 14 February 2018. According toHipHopDX, they announced plans to release a new album at the performance.[2] On 9 April 2022, at a show in Portland, Oregon, Dan the Automator officially announced that a third album was in the works, predicting a fall 2022 release.[7]
In March 2023, they releasedMusic To Drink Martinis To in partnership with Ford’s Gin.[8]
| Title | Album details |
| |
|---|---|---|---|
| US[9][10] | AUS[11] | ||
| So... How's Your Girl? |
| 198 | — |
| White People |
| 168 | 63 |
| Music To Drink Martinis To |
| — | — |
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK[12] | |||
| "Magnetizing" | 1999 | — | So... How's Your Girl? |
| "Rock 'n' Roll (Could Never Hip Hop Like This)" | 76 | ||
| "The Projects (PJays)" (featuringDave andDel the Funky Homosapien) | — | ||
| "The Truth" (feat. Roisin* & J-Live) | — | ||
| "Sunshine" | 2000 | — | |
| "The World's Gone Mad" (featuringAlex Kapranos, Del the Funky Homosapien andBarrington Levy) | 2004 | 82 | White People |
| "Case Study" (featuringEmi Meyer) | 2023 | — | Music To Drink Martinis To |
| "How Does It Feel?" (featuringJustin Warfield) | — |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |