ROLE MODEL TAKES OVER
New Music + Film Debut
Need a role model? Tucker Pillsbury (A.K.A. Role Model) might just be the perfect fit. The singer’s career took off last year with a hit single; now, Pillsbury is diving back into music — his latest album, Chuck Timely & the Hourglass, dropped in August — and taking on a new challenge with his role in Lena Dunham’s upcoming Netflix comedy Good Sex.
Role Model began in the music industry a decade ago, releasing rap and hiphop EPs. It wasn’t until 2024’s Kansas Anymore, an album that saw Pillsbury move into the world of country and rock, that he broke through into the mainstream. Listeners responded to his confessional and vulnerable storytelling, and single “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” was a major hit (it currently has over 250 million streams on Spotify).
Now, Pillsbury is building off of that momentum with third album Chuck Timely & the Hourglass, which sees the artist take on a persona of Chuck Timely, a character he envisions as a “time traveler” — and a bit “pathetic.”
“The common thread was about time and feeling a little bit stagnant in this two-year period of being single and dating and then not dating and feeling this pressure the entire time…to find love and all the questions that come with it,” he told People. “I wanted to represent this character that I came up with as well as the themes which he represents. He’s a little bit pathetic in a charming way.”
Lead singles “High Hopes 3000” and “Joy” have the same country-rock production Role Model’s fans know and love, while exploring the ups and downs of dating as you get older.
“Does love come around, or does one come around to it?” he muses on “High Hopes 3000,” even as he pleads with the universe for some high hopes (“Lord knows, I could use ‘em,” he admits).
Pillsbury might still be figuring out his love life, but professionally, he’s getting ready to dive into a new arena. In 2025, it was announced that he would be joining the cast of Good Sex, an upcoming romantic comedy written and directed by Lena Dunham. Natalie Portman and Mark Ruffalo are also set to star.
Chuck Timely & the Hourglass has been dominating the streaming charts and, with Good Sex expected out later this year, it looks like 2026 will be the year of Role Model.