Flo Milli Is Here to Change the Game

“What do your nails say?”, I ask eyeing a pair of long white claws, each painted with a different embellished letter in a gothic font. Though it’s technically August, we find ourselves inside a studio in Downtown Los Angeles on a colder-than-usual day. It’s Saturday morning and Tamia arrives to set just a few hours after wrapping a music video shoot earlier the same morning. She spreads both her hands out in front of her to reveal that together, her nails spell out “FLO MILLI”.

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Only four weeks have passed since the release of her debut mixtape Ho, Why is You Here?, but you probably wouldn’t even realize after being in the same room with her that she’s relatively new to the game—Flo Milli handles herself like a pro. Maybe that’s why after she dropped her project in July it didn’t take long before her name was trending on Twitter, and she was receiving praise from the likes of Missy Elliot, Janelle Monáe, Jojo, and more. It’s not too often that an artist can put out their first project and capture the attention of the world quite like this. But after meeting Flo, it didn’t take long for me to realize she’s not just any rapper.

The Alabama-bred musician, neé Tamia Carter, knew she was bound for fame at a young age. She started performing and writing music in Mobile as early as 9 years-old—forming a rap group by the name of Pink Mafia that she began performing with through her teenage years. “I was always the Beyoncé of the group, of every group, because I always knew what I wanted,” she tells me over the phone a few days later. Her voice is soft and polite, with a smooth Southern drawl to it. She continues without missing a beat: “That’s why I’m solo now because nobody really wanted it as much as me.”

Fast forward to 2015 when the then 15-year-old dropped her first solo track titled “No Hook” with raw lyrics that brag: ”I’m not a thug, I don’t be in these streets / But if you pull up, you gon’ feel this heat / Who the hell would I be if I let you disrespect me?” From there, Flo knew that in just a few years’ time, with a little more experience and dedication to perfecting her skills, she could make it big. That’s why after saving up from her side job at McDonald’s just to book studio space and birthing her new rap ego by the name of Flo Milli, she knew it was time to go full speed ahead towards the goal of being the next big female act. And then she went viral.

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“It was around the time Lil Nas X was blowing up so I saw he got a deal and I was like ‘hm’,” she reveals. Thus, birthed “Beef FloMix”—a rework of Playboi Carti’s “Beef” that went viral on social media, especially on the social platform TikTok. “Out of nowhere, around the same time, someone made up a dance to the song. And it [just] blew up.”

Once the dream of becoming a star began to turn into a reality, it was time to get serious about the work. In early 2019, Flo connected with a music manager through Instagram, before meeting with him in New York to discuss the potential for the future. “I met Vonsin [Faniyi] and from there I kind of just trusted him and my [new] managers to take my career to the next level.”

Despite 2020 being of a year of chaos and quarantine, summer meant it was time for Flo to shine. After inking a deal with RCA Records, home to notable names like Alicia Keys, Usher, and Normani, it was time to make her debut. And after having an abundance of time thanks to a worldwide lockdown, she finally found a routine and started writing.

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Evidently, Flo was right about making it while she was young. Now at 20 years old, the hype has just begun. Ho, Why is You Here? offers a multifaceted look into everything black women can be, whether it’s heartbroken, disappointed, confident, sexy, or cool, the independence she garnered at a young age makes Flo Milli who she is: a girl we all want to be. There’s something for everybody: a message to the haters titled “Not Friendly”, that opens up with the lyric, “See you may not like me but I’m still getting money, bitch.” Or the track “Pussycat Doll” which offers a feel-good anthem of independence with self-assured lyrics like “Keep that nigga on his toes and make sure you put up a wall / I can’t trust ’em, I don’t love ’em / …And my ass been gettin’ fatter, you can see it in my walk.”

“Tamia is more chill,” she says, comparing herself to her alter ego. “But Flo is really just out there—she doesn’t give a fuck about anything. Tamia is down to earth, chill, but she can be crazy sometimes too so I would say both of them are crazy,” she says laughing.

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Maybe it’s that “out there” personality that’s helped garner the following she’s established. If you look at the comments under one of her Youtube videos or search her name on Twitter, one thing that’s consistent is the praise and love she gets from other black women, especially those expressing their excitement in seeing a dark-skinned black woman getting her shine.

When asked where her self-love and drive come from, Flo equates her peace with part of the remedy that helps her stay grounded. “If you want to learn more about yourself and be more confident you just gotta practice the things that you love…” she says trailing off. “Keep your mind on a higher vibration, a high frequency, and treat yourself right.”

Back on set, Flo is ready the moment she steps in front of the camera: immediately finding her light while the photographer prepares the shot, adding her notes on which accessories or hairstyle she thinks best complement the look. Her energy remains positive despite this shoot happening immediately after two different video shoots the day before, making it over 24 hours straight since she’s been up. Flo Milli puts in the work. And it’s something she makes very clear from the start of our interview.

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“I work really hard and I don’t take shit from nobody,” she says when asked what’s the most Capricorn thing about herself. “I want my music to move people in a way where they forget about all their problems or makes them want to dance or feel good regardless of the genre. [I want to be known for] being a legend and an icon and somebody that works very hard.”

With just a few months left in 2020, Flo plans to work on and maybe even release her debut album, continuing her goal of making hits that make girls feel good about themselves. Though she’s just getting started, there’s no doubt that this girl was born to be a star. “Honestly I don’t think I’ll ever reach a limit; I don’t have a limit,” she says without a shred of doubt in her voice. “Until I’m gone off this earth, I don’t want to stop reaching goals. I want to keep reaching them until they can’t be reached anymore.” She pauses before adding: “I would like to have a couple Grammy’s and be a billionaire, though.”