I’m Not a Model. But I Ended Up In a Menswear Look Book Anyway.
Collage: Gabe Conte
I’m not an ugly man. I’m certainly not a beautiful one, either. I’m definitely no model. So you can understand why I was a little surprised when I received a message from Laura Arnold at J. Press telling me, “I run a campaign called J. Press Icons and I’m putting together the cast for the SS24 iteration. I was wondering if you’d be interested in being a part of it.”
You could understand why I was confused. As I pointed out, I’m not—to quote Derek Zoolander—a really, really, really ridiculously good-looking person. I like to describe myself as “George Costanza if he grew up playing sports” or “Seth Rogen’s stunt double.” I’m not hard on the eyes, but I grew up in the 1990s when being a person who modeled for a clothing company meant you had to be rail thin, smoke a lot of cigarettes, and get photographed with members of Oasis one week and Blur the next. The shock wore off when I remembered this isn’t 1995; it’s 2024—smack in the middle of the Homie Look Book era.
If you pay even the slightest bit of attention to menswear brands, you likely have an idea what I’m talking about. J. Press has done it before. Arnold says that “the inspiration mainly stems from the idea that some of the coolest-looking people and outfits have such nonchalance to their appearance.” So that means musicians, cooks, artists, podcast hosts, and, yes, a few writers. Some you may know, others you may have heard of but never seen, but the idea is normalcy. It’s moving slightly away from the fantasy of Ralph Lauren or sexuality of Calvin Klein and into a more relatable place. These guys wear this brand, so you could also. And by these guys, I almost always mean people with followings on the internet.
Aimé Leon Dore does it, J.Crew recently did as well. Rowing Blazers has enlisted everybody from comedians to shop employees to, uh, Caroline Calloway to model for the brand. For the latest Perennials campaign, Drake’s just went ahead and got basically everybody in the menswear world, from Brooklyn vintage dealer Sean Crowley to James and Lawrence from Throwing Fits. They got a lot of familiar faces. Some of them match ones you may have seen in those other look books. There is some overlap. Aaron Levine, for instance, looks cool in anything, so ALD and Drake’s have asked him to pose. The guys who run Alfargo’s Marketplace, the reigning kings of the downtown style crews, are J. Press Icons, and they showed up in the aforementioned Drake’s Perennials photos. As for me? You can likely trust that I’ll never be asked to do something like this again.
Since I did get asked this one time, however, I’ve been thinking a lot about the Homie Look Book and why it’s having a moment. One of the things I like is that I can tell the difference between a Drake’s or J.Crew campaign. The creative teams behind these look books spend enough time trying to make sure that, besides some of the recurring faces you’ll see from time to time, the looks are distinct enough. The Drake’s photos tend to have good lighting, while the Aimé Leon Dore look book shots are a little darker and moodier. Arnold, whose photography and personal style I’ve been a fan of even before J. Press bestowed me with Icon status, also has a personal touch that I couldn’t quite put my finger on until I was in front of the camera.
“I’m shooting more film these days and personally prefer the tones and colors it produces over digital, but am still supplementing with digital shots. Film is much, much more expensive, so you don’t want to break the bank. I’m currently shooting on a Mamiya RZ67 using the workhorse that is Kodak Portra 400,” Arnold tells me.
When I ask why, Arnold mentions a lot of mid-sized and smaller brands are shooting a mix of film and digital to achieve a soft look these days, “which I think works perfectly in the fashion industry where you want people to feel the clothes through a photo.” The word feel was the key to unlocking why the Homie Look Book seems to be everywhere these days. It’s the same reason we hear people tossing around words like community or vibes. We want to feel connected to something more than ever, and since all of these brands are still in the business of selling clothing that isn’t exactly inexpensive even come end-of-season sale time, making people who see the photos feel like, Hey, I know that guy. I can pull that off, makes it just a little easier for, well, guys who look like me, to pull out the Visa.
But that did have me wondering: why was I asked? Me. A guy who feels like a sentient bag of frozen pierogies with a beard. I promise you, dear reader, me being asked to sit for J. Press is indeed the chicken and this article is the egg it hatched. I was asked, then the idea to write about the Homie Look Book came up and I told my editor, “I’m one of those homies!” So I did the awkward thing and hit Arnold up. I asked if there was a mixup and they meant to ask one of the other guys named Jason Diamond, like the doctor who works on the Kardashians and gives rich people in Beverly Hills something called a “vampire facial.” He seems like a better fit given he has me beat in search engine SEO and he has easy access to Botox. But Arnold told me no, J. Press wanted me.
“I always try to get together a group of people with a range of different styles for this specific project and felt that you slotted in perfectly between some of the more trad and casual vibes of others involved,” Arnold says, then adds the greatest compliment I’ve maybe ever received. “Also, you really have an impeccable selection of hats.”
So there you have it. Write a few books, spend too much time on social media, and get to a point in your life where you’re in your 40s and your wife has to tell you “Closets are for more than just hat collections,” and maybe you too can be a Look Book Homie.
Originally Appeared on GQ
More Great Style Stories From GQ
Rolex’s Biggest Release of 2024 Is…
The 20 Greatest Nike Air Max Sneaker Colorways of All Time
Kevin Hart’s Royal Oak Costs More Than a House
Not a subscriber? Join GQ to receive full access to GQ.com.
Every Single MoonSwatch, Ranked
