Photograph by Theo Preiswerk
On a recent morning, she’s dressed in an oversized black blazer, black shirt, and baggy denim, with her hair slicked back and sculptural silver jewelry on display. She has a distinct point of view. Heads turn to watch her as she moves through the coffee shop: How did this superstylish woman end up in Atlanta?
Düsseldorf-born stylist Metta Conchetta has called Atlanta her home base for the last nine years. “All of my music heroes came from Atlanta, and I was extremely influenced by hip-hop music,” she says. “I said, ‘Why not?’ to Atlanta.” After arriving here, she sent a cold email to famed hip-hop photographer Zach Wolfe. That email led to her first styling job, for a magazine featuring Metro Boomin. Wolfe was unable to take that gig, so she worked with photographer Diwang Valdez. “Diwang and his crew, Motion Family, became big mentors throughout my career,” she says. From there she made a name for herself, making the rounds on commercial and editorial shoots and popping up at the hottest fashion events in town. She has styled some of the biggest names in music for publications, brands, and events, working with clients such as Jack Harlow, Ice Spice, 6LACK, and SoFaygo.
She was at the top of her game by anyone’s standards. But Conchetta began to feel a creative itch. “I had collaborated with and been around the biggest names in fashion, magazines, and music. I had worked for so long to create images for other people, but I still felt like I had another calling in me to create something for myself,” she says. In November 2023, after two years of work, she launched her own line, ATTEM.
Meaning “breathe” in German (in addition to spelling Metta backward), ATTEM is a representation of Conchetta’s personal style, which leans toward the androgynous. “I love experimenting with the feminine and masculine,” she says. It’s a combination of the professionalism that Conchetta says was ingrained in her German upbringing, and her street-style perspective. Inspired by this mashup, the collection marries items like oversized dress shirts and blazers with denim, leather skirts, and hoodies. “I wanted to do something beyond the shallow, a little niche, that felt like it catered to me and people like me, not the whole world,” she says.
Conchetta likes the flexibility her line has given her creatively, showcasing her style across a variety of categories, from shoes to accessories to ready-to-wear. All items are under $250. “I wanted to give a portion of myself that was affordable and of good quality,” she says. With her drop business model, she’s able to share her fashion with the world when the inspiration strikes, rather than when dictated by a seasonal schedule. Shoes, for example, are inspiring her right now and selling well, so she’s planning to focus her future energy there.
“My goal with ATTEM is to give people a platform,” Conchetta says. “You don’t have to know what to do with this oversized dress shirt, but that’s on you [as the customer] to be creative. It’s there for you to experiment.”
This article appears in our July 2024 issue.
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