R&B/Hip-Hop

André 3000‘s revealed an interesting tidbit about his instrumental album New Blue Sun. During a recent appearance the Toure Show podcast, the Atlanta rapper said his debut solo album doesn’t count towards his current deal with Epic because it’s not a rap project. “They congratulated on the process, they congratulated on what the work was, […]

Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre’s anticipated Missionary album is set to arrive in December, but the legendary West Coast duo have given fans a taste of what’s to come. While doing an interviewed for a special Drink Champs episode at ComplexCon in Las Vegas over the weekend, Snoop and Dre previewed some hard-hitting tracks off […]

After leading her LSU Tigers team to an easy win over the Northwestern State Lady Demons on Friday (Nov. 8), Flau’jae Johnson is facing off a slightly more challenging opponent: an abrupt weather change. She’s just traveled 1400 miles to Brooklyn to shoot a new music video, and despite the weather app prognostications, she wasn’t expecting it to be as cold as it was, so she’s decided to dip inside a small Cumberland Street apartment in between scenes for her new visual — but not before taking picture with a fan who’d spotted her on the street. 

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Kicking back in a chair for our interview, I ask why the 21-year-old Roc Nation signee chose to shoot in NYC rather than downtown Baton Rouge. It turns out, she wanted to give props to the inspiration for her song “Master Plan,” a Rakim-sampling cut from the forthcoming deluxe edition of her debut album, Best of Both Worlds. 

“I’m paying tribute to what hip-hop started,” she says. “This is just a tribute to all of the people in New York who started it — from DJ Kool Herc to Grandmaster Flash & the Furious 5. I feel like New York is the mecca of hip-hop, so this is where we’re supposed to do it.” 

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That rap fundamentalism is part of a discipline that threads her dual paths, as both an All-SEC guard and an aspiring rap star. The latter career began at the intersection of tragedy and inspiration: On May 19, 2003, her father, emerging Savannah, Georgia rap star Camouflage, was shot and killed in front of a local recording studio. It was six months before Flau’jae was born. 

“My mama had told me the whole story about my father, and how he died and how he was a rapper,” she remembers. “I just really clung to it, because all I had left of him was his music.” By age eight, she decided she wanted to be a rapper, too, studying her father’s songs before recording her first song, with the help of her uncle. 

By age 12, she’d competed on Lifetime’s The Rap Game competition show, flaunting impressive conviction and dexterity for a pre-teen. By the time she ended her high school career, she had also established herself as a hardwood phenom, earning a slot as a McDonald’s All-American after becoming Sprayberry High School’s all-time leading scorer. 

Her dominance has continued at LSU, where she won a national championship in 2023. After making it to the Elite Eight last season, she has no plans of falling short again. “I already tasted a national championship, so anything less of it to me is going to be a failure,” she admits. 

After the season, she continued her rapping ways, dropping off her debut LP, Both of Best Worlds, before performing at the 2024 ESPY Awards. Two weeks ago, Lil Wayne, who collabed with her on “Big Bag,” brought her out to perform at his Lil Weezyana Fest at the Smoothie King Center. It was the latest in a series of joint level-ups she hopes carries her through the rest of the LSU season, and what should only be the beginning of a lengthy rap career.

On the set of “Master Plan,” Flau’jae discusses with Billboard career beginnings, her father’s influence, her school-ball-rap career balance and more.

Your new single samples Rakim’s “Paid in Full.” Being from Georgia, were you always tapped in with the New York rap scene?

When I was younger, all I did was really listen to my father. So his style was so different. My mom told me he used to listen to all types of artists from people from New York, from the West Coast. He was influenced by ’Pac. So when I knew I really wanted to take rap seriously, I just went to get my research, just like with basketball: You go study the greats. I feel like that’s what you do in music. So I took that approach from basketball. I was like, “Whoever was the greatest, I want to go study them and find out how they did it.” So I just watched so many documentaries and tapped in. My Uncle G told me to study all the greats.

And I found [Rakim], and he’s in my top five forever. I just think as a lyricist, he just was way ahead of his time, even back then. And when I first was in the studio [making “Master Plan”], the first thing I thought when I heard that sample was like, “I’m thinking of a master plan.” So my hook, that’s the first thing I said in the studio. It was like destiny. 

You’ve been rapping for a while, but what age specifically did you record your first song?

I was probably like eight. My mama had told me the whole story about my father and how he died and how he was a rapper and stuff like that. And I just really clumped to it. I was like, wow, this is because that’s all I had left of him was his music. So that’s all I used to listen to. So once I figured that out, I was like, yeah, that’s what I want to do. So I started rapping. My uncle kind of got me into it and it was history from there.

What did you guys use to record?

Oh man, just remixes. We would do remixes. I remember that in the little room when I recorded my EP, I performed it, and that’s when I really got my start. On a computer and a little beat-down mic — like a performance mic. 

You mentioned listening to your dad growing up. What are your favorite lyrics from him? 

A lot of ’em. But the main one is, “It’s too late to save us and we gotta save these kids.” It’s a song called “Ghetto.” That’s just a lyric where it’s just like when you get to a certain age, you realize a lot of the older people, we’re stuck in our ways. It ain’t much that we can do for a 20, 30-year-old. But the kids — they’re so precious and they’re going to create the future and they’re going to innovate and become our leaders. So we gotta try to put them in the best position to change the world because it is kind of over with for us in a sense of our mindset.

Your NIL deal and just overall activity has paid off. You recently bought 20 acres of land. What are your specific plans for it? 

That’s more for my business portfolio. But something I’ve been working on for so long is building a resource center in my city of Savannah, Georgia. It’s going to be a sports and music resource center and also with tutoring just for financial literacy. And I’m trying to get all of my brand partners and people involved and create a curriculum for kids so they can go somewhere after school and just have a place to be safe.

Needless to say, you lead a very busy life. How do you balance recording music with schoolwork and ball?

It’s damn near impossible, but it’s like I’m doing the impossible right now. That’s what makes the journey so great because it’s so hard. I was telling my boyfriend the other day — nobody has ever done this before, so there’s no blueprint on how to do it. So I gotta create my own thing that works for me and that’s what I’ve been doing.

I’ve got my own studio in my apartment now — and now, when I create my demos, if I got 10, 12 [songs] lined up, I’ll fly my engineer down there. He’ll come for a week. We’ll package those demos up. Now they’re done and they sound good, because I can only do so much in the studio. I’m not a magician. So it’s like things like that. But the main thing is just keeping basketball the main thing. My performance on my court helps sell my music. 

What about on the student end of things? How do you keep up on top of that?

Most of my classes are online. I’ve only got one class that’s in person. It’s an entrepreneurship class, but most of my classes are online, and my professors are usually super cool. I did miss an exam, so I gotta go make that up. But everything is usually online, so I’m cool. 

Coach Mulkey is known to be a little strict at times. How’s it been dealing with that and trying to maintain your level of play on the court? 

Yeah, she is. But she knows I’m going to take care of my business. So she don’t gotta worry too much about me. It’s just more so this year just about being a leader, because I’m an upperclassman now. So I gotta be able to lead the younger ones. So she’s just on me about being a consistent leader, having energy every day and being ready to lead. She’s like, “I know what you’re going to do, but people feed off your energy.” She knows the rap thing.

Does she have a favorite song from you? 

She probably liked the song Lil Wayne said her name. Man, that’s probably it. She was eating that up. She was in the video and all. She really supports everything that I do. That’s why, in return, I make sure I give 110% on the court. 

What was more nerve-wracking: performing at the ESPYs and Lil Weezyana or playing in the NCAA National championship game? 

I ain’t gon’ lie — both of them. And it’s not even [about playing] in front of the people. When I’m in the game or I’m on the stage, I don’t see people. I only see my fans when I’m like, “They really rapping with me.” But I’m kind of so keyed in what what I’m doing that I’m in a state of tranquility. I’m in this place where nobody could really touch me, but I’m still nervous. 

But it’s just like boom, go. As soon as the ball tips off, I ain’t nervous no more. As soon as the music comes on, I ain’t nervous no more. I know what I’m here to do, but that’s because of my preparation. There’s really nothing to be nervous about, just the optics of everything. It’s the same thing; getting ready for a game is just like getting ready for a show.

What level of “success” would mean success for you as a rapper?

I’m trying to be big as Taylor Swift. She changed my mind when I heard she came down to Louisiana and she sold out the Superdome — the Superdome. And then she had the Smoothie King Center just for merch. That’s the level that I want to be. Grammy nominations. That’s where I want to be. Like Drake. Longevity. 

So to be clear, you do 100% plan on going to the WNBA and rapping? 

For sure. Nobody’s done that yet, so that’s definitely my goal. So I gotta be the first. I’ve been the first to do a lot of things. But doing it on that level, it’s just so respectable. I really just try to learn from the WNBA vets that I talked to about what their skillset looked like, what their training looked like, [and] how they stay sharp. Then, I talk to musicians about [what] their skillset look like, [and] how they stay sharp. Just meshing those together. Best of both worlds. 

In WNBA terms — bench player, starter, all-star, All-WNBA, MVP — what level of rapper are you right now? 

Right now? I feel like I’m still coming off the bench and I don’t like that. I ain’t never came off the bench in my basketball career, but it’s like music is different. You got to take steps. There’s a million people putting on music every day. So you gotta take steps in building your brand. When I say off the bench, I say I’m coming off the bench to the world because they don’t understand how I can be good at both things. So they don’t really take my music as seriously. But can’t nobody rap with me. So in that regard, I would say All-Star, MVP, line them up, but as far as just my recognition, I feel like I’m still coming off the bench.

New Edition is extending its popular residency at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas. The R&B/pop group announced Monday (Nov. 18) that “New Edition: Las Vegas” will return to the venue for six more performances in winter 2025, including Valentine’s Day weekend: Feb. 12, 14-15, 19, 21-22. “There’s no R&B group quite like New […]