Hugo Chakrabongse Levy (born 6 August 1981), known under the mononym Hugo or Thai name Chulachak Chakrabongse (Thai: จุลจักร จักรพงษ์; RTGS: Chunlachak Chakkraphong) is a British Thai actor and singer-songwriter. Based in New York City and signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation label, his musical style has been dubbed by Roc Nation as "gangsta-rock". He is best known for his bluegrass re-working of Jay-Z's "99 Problems". His debut album, Old Tyme Religion, was released on 10 May 2011. He can trace direct royal heritage back from his maternal great-grandfather, Prince Chakrabongse Bhuvanath, a son of King Rama V of Thailand, and is a second cousin once removed of the King of Thailand, King Vajiralongkorn.
Early life and career
Levy was born in London to M.R. Narisa Chakrabongse, raised in Thailand near the Chao Phraya River, and used to live in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City. Now he resides in Bangkok, Thailand. He is the grandson of Prince Chula Chakrabongse, the great-grandson of Prince Chakrabongse Bhuvanath, and the great-great-grandson of King Rama V of Siam. He is of English, Russian, Scottish, Thai and Ukrainian heritage.
As a teenager, he released four studio albums with the band Siplor, which had several of its records banned on the radio. After moving to London, he became highly influenced by blues musicians such as Howling Wolf, Son House, Robert Johnson and Skip James as well as more modern musicians and bands such as Guns N' Roses, Nirvana, Dr. Dre, Jeff Buckley, MGMT, Tame Impala, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Devendra Banhart, The Big Pink and Jack White. He achieved recognition when his song "Disappear" was featured on Beyoncé's album I Am... Sasha Fierce, beginning a series of collaborations that led to a record deal with Jay-Z's Roc Nation label in 2010.
Personal life
He married his longtime girlfriend, Tassanawalai Ongartitthichai, in 2009. The couple have two children.
Band
Jon Cornell – bass
Mark Slutsky – drums
Chris LoPresto – keyboards
Jay Barclay – guitar
Studio albums
(2011) Old Tyme Religion
Old Tyme Religion
99 Problems
Bread & Butter
Hurt Makes It Beautiful
Born
Wake Alone
Sai Lom (สายลม) (Thailand Edition)
(2014) Deep in the Long Grass
Twitch and Tug
I Need the Truth
All I Think About
A Fire Worth Keeping
Feather
(2017) ดำสนิท
ดำสนิท
อย่ามาให้เห็น
ครอบครอง
อานม้า
ระวัง
แค่มีเธอ
แพ้ให้เป็น
ยอม
Love Song No. 9
บันไดสีแดง
EP Albums
(2020) Lacuna
Show Love
(2021) เรือสำราญราตรีอมตะ
(2024) เรือสำราญราตรีอมตะ ภาค 2 อีแร้งแห่งจักรวาล
(2025) D’Electro
Intruders
If The Devil’s Gonna Use Me
In popular culture
Hugo's version of "99 Problems," his first single, was featured in the Natalie Portman/Ashton Kutcher romantic comedy No Strings Attached, in the 2011 remake of Fright Night, and in the pilot episode of the NBC thriller series The Blacklist. "Bread and Butter" was featured on the season two television promo for ABC's comedy-drama series Castle. The same song also featured on the seventh season of HBO's series Entourage.