The Girl with all the gifts
Young rapper and actress Alaya High is taking her career to the next level
Alaya High — known to her rapidly expanding fan base as rapper That Girl Lay Lay — has seen her image plastered on backpacks, party supplies and hoodies. She has her own line of lip gloss. She’s appeared on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and long-running improv comedy series “Wild ’n Out.”
It’s all been a warmup for Lay Lay’s next act. The Houston native will star in her own Nickelodeon series, “That Girl Lay Lay,” set for a 13-episode summer run. She’ll also perform the theme song. It’s the first part of a larger deal that includes music and merchandise.
“I was just a regular girl, going to school, playing with my friends. Now, I’m very popular. I’m very famous. I can’t even go certain places by myself anymore,” Lay Lay says with a slight Southern drawl.
Oh, to have the confidence of a teenager. Lay Lay turned 14 in January and now lives in Atlanta. But she’s frequently back home.
“I’m very, very happy,” she says. “I’m just a Houston girl who took her dreams and went somewhere with it.”
Though she doesn’t remember it, Lay Lay started rapping at the age of 4. There are grainy YouTube videos of her freestyling about having no food in the refrigerator, vibing to the beat in her head. She recorded her first song at 5.
“I had, like, eight teeth in my mouth,” Lay Lay says. She giggles frequently between questions. “I literally was just rapping off the dome.”
She calls her parents her biggest influences because of their work ethic and positive attitudes. Lay Lay’s father is Acie High of rap duo Aqualeo, who made national headlines after a 2018 airport brawl with Tekashi 6ix9ine. Her mother, Antanique Landry, owns Fenixx Fitness in the Bellaire area.
Lay Lay would accompany her dad to the studio, often for hours, and kept a close watch on what he was doing. She eventually took over the microphone and, at age 11, convinced him to record her freestyling in the car and upload it to social media.
Two weeks later, the clips exploded on Instagram, racking up more than half a million views.
“I was at my friend’s house. We went outside to go play. I came back, and I looked at my phone, and I was like, ‘Why does my phone say 3,000 notifications? I was like, ‘Girl, I’m famous!’ ” Lay Lay recalls.
She was being reposted by every
one from 50 Cent to the entertainment site The Shade Room. Talk shows came calling. Major label were interested in meetings. Lay Lay eventually ended up at Empire Records, where she could have creative control, among other things.
“A lot of them weren’t trying to pay up. They were just trying to use me for my talent,” Lay Lay says. “I was like, ‘Oh, no, no, no.’ ”
She released her first album, “The Cheat Code,” in 2017; followed by 2019’s “All the Way Lit Up,” a holiday album; and last year’s “Recess Is Over.” Her music videos earn millions of views, and she’s collaborated with Lil Tr33zy, Young Dolph and Lil Duval. Her latest, with Bun B, called “Rich,” drops next month.
She’d like to work with female rappers but says one has yet to agree to collaborate with her. Maybe they can’t handle that Lay Lay fire.
“I do not know what it is. I hope that changes when I get older,” Lay Lay says. “But once I get to the top, I’m there. They better take it while they can.”
The window is quickly closing. (Megan Thee Stallion, if you’re reading this, here’s your chance.) Lay Lay’s Nickelodeon series is already in production. “That Girl Lay Lay” was created by David A. Arnold, a writerproducer on Netflix’s “Fuller House.” It follows Lay Lay, an avatar from a personal affirmation app that comes to life, and her best friend Sadie as they navigate life as teenagers.
Producer Will Packer, whose credits include “Girls Trip” and “Little,” calls his young star “a multitalented force of nature destined for mega stardom.” And she’s something of a rarity — a Black teenager headlining her own live-action series.
It doesn’t leave much time for hanging out with friends or watching movies at home. But Lay Lay knows all too well the grind doesn’t stop.
“I’m always tired. But I can’t really say, ‘Oh, I wish I could (rest),’ because this is what I wish for,” she says. “I wish I was this popular girl. I wish I was an inspiration for everyone. That’s what I manifested. I said I would do it, and I have it now.”