Beyond The Court
I first met Abby Meyers at Princeton, I knew there was something special about her. We were paired up for an entrepreneurship project, and our competitive spirits just clicked. Me being on the tennis team and her being the basketball star she is, we had that drive that just matched up perfectly.
I remember coming back after a summer of working on my music, and there's Abby at a party, shouting, "Damian, your song is so sick!" Next thing I know, it's blasting through the speakers. She'd actually asked the DJ to queue it up. That moment stuck with me - it showed me how genuinely supportive Abby is.
Fast forward to now, and we've just wrapped up an incredible collaboration for ENDQUOTE. The idea was to create something that captures both Abby's prowess on the basketball court and her deep connection to nature. You see, Abby's got this incredible energy, both on and off the court. But what really inspired our design was thinking about where she goes to recharge.
"Her 'sanctuary' is where she connects with nature," I explain to people. "That's what lets her bring so much energy to everything else she does."
So we came up with this design that's like a visual mash-up - picture a basketball court with mountain silhouettes. It's all about balance. I always say, "When you've got a big heart like Abby, you're always giving. But you've got to take care of yourself too, so you've got something left to give."
Of course, being a musician, I had to bring some tunes into this collab. That's how "Sanctuary" was born. I worked on it with Tyler Walker, aiming for that perfect EDM vibe. "We wanted that moment where you just have to throw your hands in the air," I tell people, grinning. "But we also wanted something that pulls you in, gets you feeling reflective."
The result? It starts with these warm synths that just wrap around you. Then the chorus hits: "I wanna know what it's like to be standing up there, feel the high with no weight to bear." It's all about that freedom Abby finds in her mountain getaways. And when the beat drops? Pure euphoria.
Filming around London's Olympic Park was perfect. It was like the place was made for our idea - nature and sports, side by side. The whole process felt magical. "It was one of those meant-to-be situations," I often say when talking about it. "We were both stepping into new territory. My first collab, Abby's first personalized gear. We were just riding the excitement."
That excitement? It's in every frame of our video, every stitch of the clothes. It's what happens when a collaboration comes from a real connection, you know?
This collaboration with Abby? It's exactly what ENDQUOTE is all about. We say, "Wear Your Story." It's about showing the world your vision of happiness, whatever that looks like. And that's exactly what we've done here - showing Abby's journey, on and off the court.There's this moment I'll never forget. I showed Abby the music, then the finished video. Her smile was everything. I remember thinking, "Even if we don't sell a single piece, seeing how proud we both are makes all the hard work worth it."
In a world obsessed with results, what Abby and I created is all about the journey. It's a reminder that our sanctuaries - whether they're mountain tops or basketball courts - aren't just for resting. They're where we find inspiration and come back stronger.
As the last notes of "Sanctuary" fade out and the light catches those mountain designs, I can feel it. This is just the start for ENDQUOTE. We're on our way up in the world of fashion that means something, fashion that tells a story.