Odell Beckham Jr. Throws A-List New York Fashion Week Party (Exclusive)

Odell Beckham Jr. just scored a big win off the field.

The NFL star, 32, hosted a star-studded event during New York Fashion Week on Friday, Sept. 12 as part of his latest venture FRI&NDS (pronounced “And Friends”) that first launched during Super Bowl Week in New Orleans earlier this year.

Held at the Highlight Room located in Manhattan, the invite-only affair — which was thrown in partnership with True Religion — attracted an elite crowd of athletes, musicians, actors and tastemakers in celebration of culture, connection and life. 

Beckham Jr. caught up with PEOPLE exclusively at the event, where he explained the significance behind throwing down during New York Fashion Week specifically — one week after hosting another party at Soho House São Paulo in Brazil — and how his venture has evolved since February.

“New Orleans raised me, but New York made me,” says the standout wide receiver, who built his professional football career with the New York Giants after being selected by the team in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft and played with them until 2018.

“It brought me through so many great times, trials, tribulations, adversity, but so many good times,” continues the Louisiana native, who tells PEOPLE exclusively while taking in the vast panoramic views of lower Manhattan from the rooftop deck at the venue.

Still, Beckham Jr. — who went on to play for the Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Rams, Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins in the years that followed — calls New York a city that he’s been “forever grateful for,” he shares.

“Anytime I come back, it’s just a good feeling, so of course, there’s no other place that we would do it but here,” the free agent says of his New York Fashion Week bash.

Attendees included Teyanna Taylor, Devin Booker, Kordell Beckham, Malik Nabers, Landon Barker, Skyla Sanders, Tim Hardaway Jr., Kyle Kuzma and Carmelo Anthony, to name a few. Austin Millz and DJ Ruckus provided the beats that kept the vibes high from start to finish.

Beckham Jr. knows how to make an entrance (yes, he pulled up in a 1997 Land Rover surrounded by a fleet of motorcycles, which then proceeded to pop wheelies up and down the active New York City street), and was fitted in True Religion from top to bottom.

His getup was classic, but cool, layering a black leather jacket by the brand over a white button-up shirt with a black tie. He matched it with True Religion bottoms — and in his continued ode to New York, completed his look with a black Yankees hat.

“I feel like now I can go into the closet and kind of throw whatever together, and as long as I feel comfortable,” Beckham Jr. tells PEOPLE of his style motto these days. “If you don’t have that confidence from within, it doesn’t matter what you put on, you still don’t feel like that.”

He adds, “Everything is from within; I’ve been building myself from within. And the outside, it’ll appear through that.”

FRI&NDS is building, too, he says since debuting the venture with a respectively star-studded event for a blowout pre-Super Bowl party. While the platform aims to highlight and empower undiscovered creatives through different events, it’s evolving at the same time.

“For me, I always felt like my life was right. I was God’s child, I always felt like the chosen one, so this is about shining light on others.”

He concludes, “The brand is forever growing,” he says. “And that’s where I think you’ll get to see it go eventually.”