Flau’jae Johnson.Photo:Trebreh Baaheth
Trebreh Baaheth
A “light day” forFlau’Jae Johnsonis not for the weak.
As she describes on a call with PEOPLE ahead of yet another away game in January, a normal 24-hour period means a schedule filled with basketball practice, interviews, packing for her next match-up and taking care of some music duties while she’s at it.
At just 21 years old, the LSU Tigers standout — who continues to lead her team with nearly 20 points per game through what has been an almost-undefeated NCAA season so far (25-1) — is balancing two lives. Not only is she one of the most talked-about collegiate athletes in the nation, but also a dedicated recording artist who has gained the approval ofLil Wayne, performed on televised stages and is now locking into a new sound.
But for the multi-talented Georgia native, it’s easier than it all looks on paper. Both careers go “hand-in-hand,” she says.
“As I get better and better in basketball and playing with pace, I kind of realize it’s the same thing,” Johnson, known in music spaces as Flau’jae, says. “The music and the basketball. You see what I’m saying? It’s like pace and rhythm and flow with everything I’m doing in basketball, so I try to just play with more rhythm. And once I’ve been doing that, it’s been feeling like I’ve been a better athlete.”
Her focus on rhythm has also helped her expand her musical palette, too. On Friday, Feb. 14 — timed with Valentine’s Day, of course — Flau’jae released what’s being hailed as her first-ever R&B project, appropriately titledFlau&B. While the LSU guard and MC has rap in her DNA as the daughter of Savannah rapper Camoflauge, her new seven-track project sees her focusing more on the melodies than the rhymes themselves.
But don’t get it twisted, she isn’t putting rap behind her. “This is not hardcore R&B. Like I don’t want the fans to get that messed up. It’sFlau&B. I’m not a singer, so I don’t want people to get that misconception, but it’s most important for them to hear just my range,” she says. “How I could go create an anthem with Lil Wayne, but I could also make something that’ll have you in your feelings, have you vibing and on those late night drives, highway music, things like that. Showing my versatility is what I’m most excited about.”
Flau caught up with PEOPLE ahead of the project’s release to talk about her love of R&B, connection with Wayne and the biggest differences between her mentality on the court and in the booth.
Flau’jae Johnson.Trebreh Baaheth
At what point in your life did you realize you were a multi-talented person? Was your love for basketball or music more evident early on?
Basketball is what I started doing first. I always just loved to play basketball. I didn’t really like to do anything else. But then when I found out that my dad made music, I knew that was something I wanted to explore, so I really just fell in love with music. I did music for a while, kind of put basketball on the back burner. And then when I got back to high school I told my mom, “I want to do music again.” And I was like, “I don’t want to play basketball.”
She told me I was going to do both, and I never really understood what that meant. And I was just saying, “Yeah, I’ll do both,” just so I could play basketball. It became a routine. I would go to practice, and then I’d go to the studio at night. I’d wake up and do the same thing. So, I got to credit my mom for just molding me into that because I didn’t think it was possible. I was like everybody else, “How is that going to work?” But it did.
Was there ever a moment where you felt like you had to choose a path?
Once my mama put it in my head, I always felt like I could make it happen. And then it just gives me motivation because I’m like, “Bro, I know this is something that nobody else could do in the world. I’m doing something that nobody else could do.” Because if they could do it, they would’ve been did it. It gives me that chip on my shoulder of doing something that’s kind of impossible. Even on the days I feel like, “Nah, I can’t do it.” I got to make it happen because so many people don’t think I could do it anyway.
Flau’Jae Johnson goes in for the layup during a Dec. 17, 2024 game against the Seton Hall Pirates.Joe Buglewicz/Getty
Joe Buglewicz/Getty
You said in the past that you used to watch your father’s tapes as a young girl.
I probably was like 8 years old. Really young and just really just found a sense of inspiration. I used to just get goosebumps. I used to just feel really connected to him and the music when I used to listen to it, so that’s when I knew I was on the right track.
As busy as you are, what’s your process today for writing and creating? Where do you find the time to create music?
Usually right after practice when everything kind of just settles down for me. I have a home recording studio now, that’s when I try to really just get into it. Right after practice when I’m just sitting in my car because that’s how I used to write when I was in Atlanta. I’d be in my Jeep, and at five in the morning, I’d go in my Jeep and just sit all day. You know what I’m saying? That’s how I would be. So that’s moreso what I do, just try to write in my car and get that old feeling back.
What do you think is the biggest difference between you in a game versus you in the studio?
I have more control. In the game, man, in the game, it’s up to the refs, it’s up to the opponents, it’s up to your team, you know what I’m saying? I don’t have control over everything, but in the studio I have so much control.
Where do you find the inspiration for your writing these days?
I ain’t going to lie, kind of just situations. But I’ve been in the R&B bag, so that’s what I’ve really been on. And people don’t understand it, and they’re like, “Nah, you got to keep rapping and all of this.” But if I feel like singing, I feel like singing. This is the kind of emotional vibe I’m in and I got to let the fans hear it. And so I’ve been trying to navigate through that, but I think me standing my ground and pushing this and how I want it to be is going to help my authenticity as an artist.
Lil Wayne has been incredibly supportive of you. What’s the best piece of advice that you’ve gotten from him on this journey?
I appreciate him so much and everything he’s poured into me. The one thing he told me when we wasat the video shoot, he was just like, “Bruh, don’t let them change you and be yourself.” At the end of the day, you definitely take knowledge from people but you have to do what feels good for you, so that’s kind of where I’m at with it. That’s where I’m at with it with the R&B. Like if I feel so deeply about something, I have to do it.
What inspired your latest shift in musical direction?
I’ve always been melodic in a way, but I’ve never tapped deep into it. And one time I was in the studio, one of my managers, he was like, “You could hold a tune.” As I started explore that and start doing that more, it just came.
I love music. I listen toAdeleall the time, and I feel like I have the capacity to reach into a different bag, so why not explore that? With Valentine’s Day, it’s just all lovey-dovey. People in their feelings the most. So I just want to give ‘em some music for the month of love.
Who in R&B do you consider your personal favorite artists?
I would have to say Maxwell, Tank and Tink, both of them. Jon B, my mama used to listen to his music a lot. But really, I love Maxwell for real. That’s who that’s I’m going with right now. He is definitely a vibe.
You’re singing a little more on this project and getting deeper on personal relationships. How important is it for you to have that outlet where you can put your feelings out in the world?
I don’t think I’ve ever been really vulnerable before in my music except from a motivation perspective and how I feel about my life and my goals. But never about my feelings about love and heartbreak and all those different feelings that you have to feel. It’s new for me. This is a different side of me, so I want to see what people gravitate to.
Where do you see yourself in the next five or so years?
I always tell people I haven’t hit my peak with music because I haven’t been able to practice music like I’ve been able to practice basketball. I’m in a gym eight hours a day. If I had eight hours a day to be in the studio, who knows the things I could learn? Once I get the ability to be able to really bask in that, it’s going to be scary. I’m excited about getting better.
Man, yeah, just embrace the new, and you can’t let people tell you what you can’t do or what they don’t think you should do. If you have a feeling about something, you got to go explore that. I feel like God gave you that and only you that. If you see a vision, you study it, you plan it and you execute it. It’s only a failure if you don’t try. Nothing is a failure at all. It all coincides to the bigger plan. So that’s what I want people to know.
source: people.com
