Flau’jae Johnson Talks Beauty Standards, Final Season at LSU, and WNBA Dreams

Flau’jae Johnson knows about having the best of both worlds, which makes her sartorial choice to wear Puma sweatpants, a zip-up Sp5der hoodie, and a retro Hannah Montana graphic tee apropos for the occasion. “I literally bought this thrifting outside of Cam Kirk Studios. I love Miley Cyrus,” Johnson tells Teen Vogue at Bravo Ocean Studios in Atlanta. “I named my album Best of Both Worlds, and I feel like she represents me. I put that together because she was a normal person, and then she was a superstar. That's me.”

It’s the night before Johnson’s September cover shoot for Teen Vogue, and she’s excited to be “in somebody else's playing field” during her fitting, she says. But Johnson is no rookie to fittings and photo shoots: She has graced the cover of SLAM not once but twice, alongside her Louisiana State University basketball teammates.

Johnson may be used to deftly crossing up her opponents on the court, but these eight-inch Marc Jacobs boots are literal ankle-breakers. Her reservations are apparent as she eyes each piece as it's placed on her athletic frame; but she’s eager, no matter the challenge, which is a deep reflection of her years of basketball training. Trusting your team when it’s game time is something she’s accustomed to, and in fashion, it’s the same.

“I get high fashion, but still, it’s got to be in the way I’m comfortable. That’s why I ask a lot of questions,” she says. “Is this a collaborative effort or do stylists take full control?”

When cameras go up the next morning, Johnson transforms while Megan Thee Stallion’s “Her” blasts through the speakers of a Four Seasons penthouse suite. Johnson's mother and manager, Kia Brooks, is enjoying the moment, spreading her reverie across the room.

“Oh, this is hard,” Johnson says in awe, changing into an animal print Theophilio jacket, which she says gives off major LSU Tigers energy. Now more than ever, as Johnson enters her final year of college basketball, she is preparing herself for what the current era of professional women's basketball will look like. Designer clothes, flashing cameras, and cooing crowds are just the beginning.

Known to many as “Big 4,” Flau’jae Monae Johnson, 21, is a senior guard on the LSU women’s basketball team. In addition to being last season’s leading scorer, she is a rapper, a businesswoman and philanthropist, a former reality competition series star, and a 2023 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball champion. With a burgeoning music career and as a top WNBA draft prospect with a bright future, Johnson — like many Gen Z'ers — refuses to pick just one lane.

On Friday, July 25, Johnson hosted her third annual Back2School Giveaway in her hometown of Savannah, Georgia, providing free school supplies, offering mammograms, and signing autographs for more than 2,500 attendees. On Sunday night, she flew from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Baton Rouge to tend to her responsibilities as a college athlete. The following morning, Johnson returned to Georgia for scheduled meetings, outfit fittings, and her Teen Vogue cover interview, which doubled as a studio session.

But it’s a slow start to the week for the hooper-turned-hitmaker. “Well, today was lighter, because I feel like it’s been longer sessions,” says Johnson, as she sinks into a rolling chair. “Usually, my day is like boom, boom, boom, but today was chill. Tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m., I'm going back to Baton Rouge to train and practice. Then I’m flying to Miami the next day for Unrivaled.”