From Ash to Light

Firebird is the culmination of everything I've been through—my past, my experiences, and the moments that have shaped me into who I am today. It’s about how I've interpreted those experiences, how my interpretations have evolved, and how I've learned to let go of conflict and rigid context in exchange for a life philosophy rooted in curiosity.

You see, truth is never static; it’s alive in the present moment. Reality is constantly in motion, just as we are. We don’t need to deny our past, but we must understand its limitations—how it conditions our reactions in the present and how, through this filter, we miss so much of what’s truly there. But once we become aware of ourselves, we can change. We can explore life with fresh eyes, seeing beyond the limits of our conditioned consciousness. When we empty our minds, we free ourselves from its borders that form around its content. We return to our natural state—aligned, creative, passionate, curious—natural-born creators, just as we were as children, before the paint dried on our canvas. But we can throw it all away and begin again, from moment to moment.

Without judgement, we are free explore. We are free to understand where we come from, to be curious about each other’s stories. When we approach one another no conclusion to oppose another, conflict dissolves and we are left only with curiosity as a default state.

So, if you're curious, here’s my context:

I grew up traveling the world in a family of creators, which is the word I’ll use from here on to describe humans. Why? Our art is our lives. For as long as we breathe we have an opportunity to create a masterpiece. Anyways, my parents created experiences for corporate teams that brought people together to collaborate and connect. From a young age, I saw both the brightest and darkest sides of humanity across the globe until my family settled into a bed and breakfast when I was ten. This became another study of humanity through a different perspective—watching people in motion, observing different personalities, and continually expanding my understanding of what it means to be human.

At a young age, I realized that emotion is the ground we all stand on. And in our individuality, we are the same—feeling the same emotions in varying degrees, for different reasons, at different times. As Viktor Frankl said, “What is to give light must endure burning.” Throughout my childhood, I was exposed to countless people, and my life was constantly in motion. My family was always building, creating, and adapting to reality, and I, too, explored various interests—primarily sports and music. This led me to New York, where I began my interdisciplinary studies, focusing on creating art, products, and experiences in the entertainment world. I spent most of my time there learning about the music industry and technology while also writing and performing music.

After graduation, I played 408 shows in one year, rapidly building my network of music creators. My first song garnered millions of streams, and my second was synced to a major network television show. At 22, I joined the founding team of Treble, which propelled me into the startup world. For three years, we brought out 200 musicians every Tuesday night. Our app received 30,000 downloads the day it launched. We facilitated thousands of connections in the music world, putting the majority of money in the pockets of independent creators. I did this because I care deeply about creators and it never felt like work to me.

Treble eventually merged with a coliving company based on the thesis that coworking for creators looked like coliving. We partnered with a real estate developer and nearly bought a townhouse to create the Air Jordan to our Nike, housing top talent in our network. Then, a few months later, COVID happened. Along the way, I discovered that I had a different biological father who had passed away when I was younger. A beautiful curveball. Treble unfortunately couldn't sustain live operations or resolve the interpersonal conflicts that emerged from the growing pains of a merger at the brink of the pandemic.

So, I decided to begin again. I focused on fixing my own problems before attempting to solve a market’s problems. I let the light shine through the cracks. And after hitting rock bottom, I found myself free-falling upwards, rediscovering who I was. I began making music again, managing artists with millions of streams, helping other founders and startups manifest their vision, and exploring new ideas. All of this led me to Firebird, which represents the constant cycle of change in our lives. We all experience it—new friends, relationships, schools, jobs, environments, government, technology, and in my case, even a change in my DNA narrative. But what connects us all is the proof that adaptability and resilience through change—embracing change—is the reason we’re all here today. It’s our conditioning that makes it difficult to let go, hard to imagine that we can be something other than the stories we’ve allowed others to tell us, other than the stories we believe to be true about ourselves. Firebird represents my personal revolution and the revolution I believe is most crucial for each of us—to roll with the punches, to be curious about ourselves, and to strive for self-actualization, burning through the limiting beliefs that hold us back from a life of joy and fulfillment, where we are connected deeply to others and ourselves.

This adventure is a vow to lead myself nowhere but this moment, to where I will only ever be, to be curious about myself and others, to approach each moment as if it were the beginning and the end, because it is neither and both simultaneously—timeless. And my hope through this endeavor is to create a platform where others can navigate their own ideas and changes together, leading them to alignment, where they are free to develop timeless art, products, and experiences that inspire others to do the same. To lay the foundation for a new way of living, marked by curiosity, creativity, collaboration, and compassion.