Flau'jae Johnson has taken no time at all to break out as one of college basketball's biggest stars.
In her first year with the Tigers, Johnson won SEC Freshman of the Year, averaging 11 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game en route to powering the Tigers to a national championship. A year later, she's only gotten better, now averaging 14.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists for the Tigers, who have again gone on a deep run in March Madness that has taken LSU to the Elite Eight.
But Johnson has found plenty of success off the court as well. She is a standout rapper with a deal signed with Roc Nation, the entertainment company owned by Jay-Z. That passion for rap comes from her family as her did was a well-known rapper, the late Jason Johnson, known professionally as Camoflauge.
Johnson's family has had a major role in helping shape her career, from inspiring her to pursue rapping to helping her land major NIL deals during her stellar basketball career. Here's what you need to know about her family.
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Flau'jae Johnson family
Flau'jae Johnson's father: Jason Johnson
Jason Johnson was a rapper who went by the stage name Camoflauge. He released three albums in his career and was famous for songs including "Cut Friends" and "Laying My Stunt Down."
Jason Johnson gained notoriety in Savannah, Georgia, his home town, but while outside his recording studio with his infant son, he was shot and killed on May 19, 2001. He was 21 years old. Flau'jae Johnson was born just under six months after he was killed. She has credited him with inspiring her to start her rap career.
"I started off because my father was a rapper. He died before I was born, so he couldn't really fulfill his dream. So that's what I'm here to do," Flau'jae Johnson said, per Savannah Magazine.
"He was the hardest lyricist coming out of Savannah," she added. "He put us on the map in a way. In the early 2000s, he had bit hits. He was really respected in the industry. And he was about to take off when he was tragically murdered in front of his recording studio in Savannah."
MORE: Everything to know about Flau'jae Johnson's rap career
Flau'jae Johnson's rap songs have often discussed the death of her father, including the song, "Guns Down," which she performed at "America's Got Talent" in 2018, that talks about how her father would still be here if the shooter had put the gun down, and the impact of not having her father around.
One of the judges from the show, Simon Cowell, came backstage after the performance to congratulate her on her performance.
"That really just shot my confidence through the roof," Flau'jae Johnson said, per Savannah Magazine. "Having someone like Simon Cowell tell you you're gonna be a superstar — it makes you put things in perspective on a bigger scale, like I can really do this."
Flau'jae Johnson's mother: Kia Brooks
Flau'jae Johnson's success has been a bit of a family business. Her mother, Kia Brooks, is her manager and runs her own company called TFNA Entertainment & Sports Management. She has served as a major inspiration for Flau'jae Johnson, who shared how much her mom has meant to her after the Tigers topped UCLA in the Sweet 16.
"I'm just emotional. I was trying to figure out what's my why, and I kind of just looked at my mom today like I never looked at her before, and I was like, I know my why now, and I had just a different level of passion," Flau'jae Johnson said. "I knew I was going to play with today, and I seen my mom out there and she just sacrificed so much for me, so it's definitely my mom."
MORE: Flau'jae Johnson NIL deals, explained
With Brooks as her manager, Flau'jae Johnson has landed several prominent NIL deals, including Puma, Papa Johns, Amazon, Doritos, Powerade, Raising Cane's and Campus Ink, among others. Brooks told On3 Flau'jae Johnson is earning millions from her partnerships.
“Me and my mom built a lot of trust, and so she really make a lot of decisions on my behalf because we built up that trust, and she knows what I want to do, she knows what I’m not going to do,” Flau'jae Johnson told Essence. “And so just having that trusting relationship, knowing she got my best interest and knowing that we both have the same goal in mind make working together much easier.”
Flau'jae Johnson's step-father: Ameen Brooks
Ameen Brooks married Kia Brooks, but he has said he doesn't view himself as the step father. He sees himself in a fatherly role for Flau'jae Johnson.
“I don’t even call it stepdaddy because I feel like as a position of a dad and I married her mom, it’s like filling the gap,” Ameen Brooks told On3. “Kia’s father got murdered. My father got murdered. Even Flau’jae’s father was murdered. She never got to see her real father, so just filling in that gap to whatever Kia already had built with being a single-parent mother. That’s the most (important) part.”
And he has been involved in the family business. According to The Times-Picayune, Ameen Brooks handles travel for Flau'jae Johnson and her music group.
Flau'jae Johnson's brother: Trayron Milton
Flau'jae Johnson has three brothers, but Trayron Milton is the most well known. Milton made headlines during the SEC championship when he stormed the court during LSU's loss to South Carolina. He was arrested for assault and battery and disorderly conduct, but was released on bond.
Though Flau'jae Johnson did not publicly comment on her brother's involvement in the incident, she posted a video to Instagram when he was released, according to The Shade Room.
Milton has a music career of his own, performing under the stage name Tray Milz.
