Flau'jae Johnson arrived on the orange carpet on WNBA Draft night in New York City looking every bit like a first-round pick expected to make an entrance. She wore a mermaid silhouette cutout gown with a fuzzy black shawl and a sparkly Judith Lieber clutch, finishing the look with soft glam, a pop of purple eye shadow and straightened hair worn down.
Before she stepped out, Johnson had told stylist Elly Karamoh she wanted a The-Met-Gala-meets-the-WNBA-Draft look, then landed on the phrase “Elevated elegance” to describe it. She also tapped Shafon Moore for makeup and Karjah Carter for hair, a fitting setup for a 22-year-old LSU guard whose profile stretches far beyond basketball.
Johnson is a soon-to-be-graduated guard out of Louisiana State University, where she won a national championship, was named the 2023 SEC Freshman of the Year and earned two First Team All-SEC selections. She also enters the draft as a recording artist, rapper and philanthropist with almost 4 million followers across Instagram and TikTok and an E.L.F. Beauty contract. That mix has made her one of the most visible players in the sport before she has even taken a professional step.
The look matched the way Johnson talks about preparation. She said, “You really only get drafted one time. Your draft fit is very important,” and described her glam as always soft and natural. For her, confidence starts at home. Johnson said her mother, Kia Brooks, was the first person to build that belief in her, and that self-assurance has become “something that’s unshakeable.”
That steadiness shows up in how she handles the noise. Johnson said she started journaling to stay grounded and uses meditation and the 6-1-7 breathing exercise to calm her nerves. She keeps a simple pregame routine, starting with a headband, then moving through eyebrow pencil, mascara, foundation, blush, lip oil and E.L.F.’s Power Grip Dewy Setting Spray. “You have to look good, and you have to feel good,” she said.
Johnson’s public image is built on that balance of polish and discipline: a college star with a draft-night spotlight, a musician with a new song, “Woah,” coming soon, and a young athlete whose style choices are part of the story she tells the public. On draft night, she did not just dress for the moment. She dressed like someone already thinking about the next one.
