e.l.f. Expands Its Athlete Ambassador Roster With Flau’jae Johnson

e.l.f. Cosmetics has signed LSU guard and rapper Flau'jae Johnson to a year-long partnership.

This effectively adds the college basketball star to the brand's growing "empowered.legendary.females." ambassador group.

Johnson joins Billie Jean King, Kendall Coyne Schofield, Katherine Legge, Ally Sentnor, Jaedyn Shaw, Jess Carter, and Lo'eau LaBonta as part of e.l.f.'s roster.

Her first project with the brand is a new episode of "Show Yourse.l.f.," the brand's purpose-driven video series, featuring original music from Johnson herself.

To mark the partnership launch, e.l.f. is also donating $75,000 to Johnson's More to 4 Foundation, which provides support programs for families, single mothers, and young people.

The signing reflects the brand's approach to influencer partnerships, building a reputation around public figures whose reach spans multiple industries.

Sport, Music, and Philanthropy

Johnson is a two-time All-SEC First Team selection and two-time Third Team All-American who has crossed 2,000 career points at LSU.

She was also part of the 2023 Division I women's basketball championship team and has built a large public profile.

On top of being a rising star in basketball, she's also a rapper and has created a foundation of her own. 

This means that Johnson had already built three distinct public identities before e.l.f.'s brand deal came into play.

Patrick O'Keefe, chief integrated marketing officer at e.l.f. Beauty, said the partnership was driven by the full scope of Johnson's work.

"Every arena she enters, whether it's basketball, music or philanthropy, she leads with courage, intention and generosity of spirit," he said.

"Partnering with her means elevating her influence, helping a generation of young women imagine no limits, move fearlessly, and show up as their fullest selves."

The Numbers Driving Women's Sports Investment

e.l.f. has been building its women's sports ambassador strategy for several years, and the category data support the brand's continued investment.

A 2024 report from Parity Now found that 88% of women's sports fans regard professional women athletes as impactful role models for young women.

This statistic also accompanies years of record-breaking viewership for women's college basketball.

The NCAA women's championship drew 4.1 million viewers in 2021 and peaked at 18.9 million in 2024.

This surge in viewership, driven in part by Caitlin Clark, shows how individual athletes can now carry audience scale that brands can build around.

This same audience logic carries into e.l.f.’s own content, with the "Show Yourse.l.f." series reaching over 7 million video views across previous episodes.

Altogether, this gives the beauty brand a repeatable content format with an established audience and creative identity.

The e.l.f. and Johnson deal offers a few mechanics worth noting for brands building ambassador programs:

• Sign talent before peak cultural saturation: Partnering with ascending athletes typically produces longer-term brand alignment at a lower cost.
• Let the series do the creative work: A recurring content format means new partners slot in without the brand rebuilding a campaign from scratch each time.
• Connect donations to specific nonprofit work: A named, dollar-amount commitment is concrete and attributable.

This model shows how a long-term platform compounds in value with each new signing or update.

Our Take: Does the Multi-Talent Model Hold Up?

We think it does, and e.l.f. has been consistent enough with its brand positioning that the pattern is now visible.

It keeps signing athletes whose public identities are well-defined outside of their sports profiles, which means the ambassador group never looks like a sponsorship list.

Here, Johnson's music and foundation work are giving e.l.f. content angles that resonate outside of the basketball court.

What's worth watching is whether the "Show Yourse.l.f." series continues to hold audience attention as the roster grows, or whether the format starts to feel redundant and boring.

e.l.f. Beauty has also recently expanded its NWSL partnership for 2026, signing Ally Sentnor and completing coverage across all 16 league markets.

Brands building ambassador programs around multi-dimensional talent need agencies that understand how to align creative strategy with long-term partnerships.

Explore the top influencer marketing agencies in our directory.