A soul patch, also known as a mouche, is a small patch of

facial hair Facial hair is hair grown on the face, usually on the chin, cheeks, bottom lip and upper lip region. It is typically a secondary sex characteristic of human males. Men typically start developing facial hair in the later stages of puberty or adol ...

between the lower lip and the chin. Soul patches have been fashionable in Europe at various times in the past, for instance in 17th-century Holland. An example from about 1625 can be seen in the '' Portrait of a Man in a Wide-Brimmed Hat'' by Frans Hals. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary dates the earliest known use of the term "soul patch" itself as 1986. Soul patches came to prominence in the 1950s and 1960s, as a style of facial hair common among African-American men, most notably

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

musicians.

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa composed Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, jazz fusion, orchestra ...

is a well-known artist who sported one from the early sixties on. It became popular with

beatnik Beatniks were members of a social movement in the mid-20th century, who subscribed to an anti- materialistic lifestyle. They rejected the conformity and consumerism of mainstream American culture and expressed themselves through various forms ...

s, artists, and those who frequented the jazz scene and moved in literary and artistic circles. Jazz flutists who disliked the feel of the flute mouthpiece on a freshly shaven lower lip could use a soul patch. On the other hand, jazz trumpeters preferred the

goatee A goatee is a style of facial hair incorporating hair on the chin entirely. The exact nature of the style has varied according to time and culture. Description Until the late 20th century, the term ''goatee'' was used to refer solely to a bear ...

for the comfort it provided when using a trumpet mouthpiece. The soul patch was revived in the early 1990s, partly helped by Luke Perry's ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...

'' character, Oliver Pike, who wore one. Some prominent athletes adopted soul patches, such as Mike Piazza and Apolo Ohno. The facial hairstyle also rose to prominence in the mall goth and

nu-metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu metal rarely features guita ...

scenes around the late 1990s to early 2000s.

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Beard {{Fashion-stub

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