Flau'jae Johnson Calls Out Use of Late Father's Song Amid LSU Loss to South Carolina

LSU Tigers star Flau'jae Johnson made her feelings clear about her deceased father's song being played during LSU's loss to South Carolina.
Jan 19, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; LSU Tigers guard Flau'Jae Johnson (4) looks on before a game against the Florida Gators at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
Jan 19, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; LSU Tigers guard Flau'Jae Johnson (4) looks on before a game against the Florida Gators at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images / Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

The LSU Tigers women's basketball team fell to 20-1 in the 2024-25 NCAA season on January 24 after losing 66-56 to the defending champion South Carolina Gamecocks.

At one point near the end of the game (which was played at South Carolina's home court), a song called "Cut Friends" by the musician Camoflauge was played in the arena.

Camoflauge's real name is Jason Johnson, an American rapper who was murdered in Savannah, Georgia, by gunfire on May 19, 2003, while he was walking his toddler son.

He's also the father of LSU Tigers star guard Flau'jae Johnson.

Instagram user @drb.tay posted a visual from the arena and referenced the song being played on their story on January 24 with the caption, "playing camouflage at the end of the game was crazy 😭🤌".

The DJ who chose the song, who goes by DJ T.O. (@shejayto on Instagram), reposted it on their Instagram story with the caption, "🤭 my bad 🤣".

Johnson posted a screenshot of this story on her X Saturday, and wrote, "I’ll take my L on the chin, but this just nasty behavior. Nun funny bout that".

At another point on Saturday evening, an X user wrote, "I have seen a lot of classless unsportsmanlike s*** in my day, but SC takes the cake. Playing a song by an opponents deceased father in the 4th quarter of a close game is some bulls***. Then y’all talkin bout some cupcake bs. Get outta here with that. @flaujae deserves better."

"Lame asl," Johnson replied.

A couple of hours later, the DJ who played the song took to X and wrote, "I apologize for playing Cut Friends Instrumental at the game yesterday. It is never my intent to disrespect anyone or offend anyone when my job is to have fun and make sure other people have a good time. I’m from the Lowcountry/C-Port area so I’ve been playing it for years, even... at other games, but I shouldn’t have played it at yesterday’s game. I play it on every radio station I’ve ever done from NC, GA, & SC & grew up on Camoflauge so it’s never played with ill intent or as a joke. I can’t control how anyone takes it but I can take responsibility &... apologize. ❤️".

It will be interesting to see whether Dawn Staley, Kim Mulkey, or somebody else within either of these programs aside from Johnson speaks out about this situation.


Published |Modified
Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.