I always wait until the last minute to write these. Just in the very last hours before I share, I sit down and try to recall a story. In most cases I send an SMS to the person I’m writing about and ask a few questions to get the story right. I’ve done that just now, but Rocky is in LA (I assume) and I’m in CPH (I’m sure of this) and its day here and night there and he hasn’t replied. So, prepare for some accidental mis-recollections.

I think I met Rocky through Virgil Abloh. This is the reality that I remember but it is very likely completely wrong. But the timeline matches up. Virgil was really great at putting people together, aside from the 10,000 other things Virgil was really great at. I THINK I went to the Nike offices in Chelsea to meet Rocky one time as well. Was that the first time? The problem with this life I’ve lived, is there is just so much happening all the time that I cannot seem to put everything into its proper folder and keep it sorted.

What I do know in this story is two things: Rocky is reliable, and Rocky is relatable. He came through on two shoots even though each time he was exhausted from either work or travel or the combination. An early morning in Paris setting up his pop-up at Dreamin’ Man and then a later afternoon in LA directly after landing from Tokyo. But he came through, and I appreciate him for this very much.

My trip to LA in late November to early December was meant to be a whirlwind of follow-up shoots in order to complete Context stories on a number of individuals I’d started photographing while at fashion weeks abroad. But…people are busy…and people bailed. It wasn’t a total wash, however. Context isn’t monetized in any way, so it is just an expense for me. I stayed at my friend Sean’s apartment in Thai Town while he was away in Scotland. I ate cheaply in the Thai restaurants and went around the city by bicycle in order to save as much money as possible.

Rocky came through, though. Fresh off a trans-Pacific flight. I’ve felt that kind of tired before. Where your body vibrates and is numb at the same time. It feels like you’ll feel that way forever, but in reality, you’re just one good sleep away from the cure. Anyhow, Rocky hits me up and I jump in Sean’s Nissan Pathfinder and rip across town (I did use his car a few times when I needed to be somewhere fast.). I arrive at Rocky’s building somewhere near La Brea (I think?) and he meets me in the lobby and takes me up.

The sun is setting, and I shoot as Rocky straightens up the place. There’s a game on the TV and we have a conversation while he watches the game. Invested in whoever is playing, but still giving his attention to me.
We chat about my career, its stagnation, his ideas for how to approach that. We chat about his matcha business, it’s growth and his fears about it as well. When I met Rocky, we were both in very different places. Rocky was at Nike in some role which probably had a title which barely covered the scope of what he did. I was at the peak of my career shooting outside the shows. Working 320+ days a year and coming home in 24-hour parcels just to leave again.

I’m only at Rocky’s place for maybe 30 minutes. The light is falling, and Rocky is jetlagged. I grab a few last portraits and let him get back to his game. He takes me down to the lobby of his building to validate my parking. I thank him for coming through for me and we say goodbye.

Driving home in Sean’s Pathfinder, I think about how much has changed in my life since the period when I met Rocky. Back then I would sleep three to four hours a night during the shows. My friend, Nabile, and I had a rule that we would do our best to go to every show possible during daylight. Every missed show was a missed opportunity for a photo. Now, I barely go to the shows at all. There are a few which are not to be missed, but otherwise I just can’t find the energy to go and shoot and then spend hours selecting and retouching photos which, due to a flawed algorithm, hardly anyone will ever see.

Rocky has his matcha. I have my Context. Both of us have other roles which we fulfil in order to make ends meet. In most cases, for me, at least, these roles are enjoyable. But nothing really hits the spot the same as doing something you love and doing it for no one else but yourself. Rocky has his matcha. I have my Context.

Thanks, Rocky.