Lola Brooke covers ’Wonderland’; opens up about her lifelong dream of becoming a rapper

When Lola Brooke was 18, she walked into her mother’s room to discuss attending college, with plans to take time off to “go work and make some money.” She was well aware of her star quality at the time, but wasn’t sure how she’d attain the entertainment goals she had set for herself. 

Now, at 29, Lola is living out her lifelong dream of becoming a rapper and enjoying the life of stardom. 

“I always thought that I might end up being a rapper,” she said in her recent cover spread for Wonderland. “So from a young age I used to try to freestyle as much as I could.”

Talking to her mom shortly after graduating high school, Lola reaffirmed those music aspirations.

“‘Ma, I feel like I’m a star, like I’m important to the world,'” she recalled saying. “‘I don’t know what it is, but I’m gonna figure it out.'”

And figure it out is exactly what she did.

Her star power and freestyling ability led to dropping out of college and releasing a couple of popular tracks that made waves on the internet. But it was her viral and most successful song, “Don’t Play with It,” featuring Billy B, that gained her mainstream recognition. 

The anthem of sorts first caught fans’ attention in 2021, but it was this year the song got nonstop radio plays; earned Lola her Billboard debut; and was performed at popular summer festivals and music events. 

“This was a song to show who I was as a full artist with energy,” she told Wonderland. “I knew that it would be a good song for the city but I didn’t know that it would be globally.”

Lola’s debut project is expected out later this year.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.