Confessions of a Video Vixen Paperback – October 17, 2006

Celebrity tell all books are still juicy even after all these years, and Karrine Steffans's book is no exception. This is a cautionary tale about what happens when you don't look beyond the bright lights and glamour of the celebrity world and face certain harsh realities, and what it does to women who come into it as a hanger on.

Karrine Steffans was born in St. Thomas and ran away from home as a teenager escaping the poverty of her childhood. Like a lot who were on her path, she went into the glamorous world of hip hop, stripping and modeling in order to support herself and then later her son. She eventually went to appearing in hip hop videos and made her way into stardom, marrying and divorcing her abusive, rapper husband Kool G Rap. Her book chronicles her relationships with her ex husband, and eventually with a variety of other rappers and professional athletes, including Jay-Z, DMX, Bobby Brown, Ja Rule, Shaquille O'Neil, Usher, P Diddy.

Why did she end up used, abused and hung out to dry by them (or any other)? Because she wanted to be loved, and she thought this is what you do to be loved in this world. Her most famous statement was that she had wives calling her looking for their husbands. When she told the wives that she had never even met their husband(s), their response was "Oh, well you will soon then." What does this say about the culture of celebrity and being a celebrity wife? That you have to accept certain things that ordinary women do not if you want to live this life of glitz and glamour and perks. She lived her life in all caps before age 25 like all women have who are in the rock n' roll / hip hop world, and then you grow up and realize it's not what it seems and you want a real man who deserves you rather than a guy like this. The problem is finding one. And she's still here, and has made a nice career out of writing and giving advice to women on how to be hot and sexy. She took lemons and made lemonade, for that we can admire her.

I am late when it comes to reading Confessions of a Video Vixen especially since I read Vindicated first. I was scrolling through the comments section and noticed a reader suggesting that readers pick up Confessions of a Video Vixen to read why Karrine became a person who thought violence was normal and continued to stay in and return to abusive relationships.

When it comes to why Karrine wrote Confessions of a Video Vixen, I didn’t believe that Karrine woke up one day thought “I’m going to go sleep with Ja Rule, Usher, Diddy, and others, so I can write a book about it”. One lesson I have learned about stories is that there always more to them and that is the case with this book.

Confessions of a Video Vixen is a story about a girl who endured physical, mental, and emotional abuse from mother and it began a cycle for Karrine that continued as she found herself in abusive relationships. Karrine’s mother put in her mind that she was unwanted, unloved, and unworthy.

In my honest opinion, Karrine went looking for love in all the wrong places because of foundation built for her was weak. Karrine’s mother and ex told her constantly how she was unloved and the cycle continued in this book and her other books. In this book, Karrine also battled depression, alcoholism, and drug addiction that built on the destructive cycle she was already on.

I believe one of the saddest moments in this book outside of Karrine’s mother abusing her and lowering her self-esteem was how her ex (who she met when she was 17 while stripping) kicked her out while she was pregnant because of an argument and before she left, he demanded that she cook a steak for him and the only thing he cared about was making sure his steak didn’t get burned.

Another sad moment in the book was when Karrine was being put out of her home and she called a few of the guys she had hooked up with and partied with and asked them for money so she and her baby wouldn’t be homeless and they didn’t seem to care. According to her, they provided thousands of dollars for shopping sprees and other things, but when she really needed help they could only spare her a few hundred dollars. Karrine learned that these guys were just using her and turned to hustling in order to feed her son because she didn’t have any money. It was a lesson that Karrine had to learn the hard way when it came to the men she thought really cared about her.

It was amazing reading the biography of Karrine’s life and reading the “more” to her story. This book is worth the five stars that I’m giving it. I see why it was a New York Best Seller. I’m glad Karrine wrote this book to show just what goes on behind the scenes at video shoots and it’s more to them than shooting fun music videos and meeting so called cool people.

One last thing: I received Vindicated and read it in two days at the beginning of June and by the end of June, I had bought five of Karrine’s books. When I start reading Karrine’s books I read them in two days or less because I can’t put them down. It’s nothing for me to lose interest quickly in a book, but that’s not the case with this book because, like Vindicated it was one of the best ones I have read. I suggest this book and Karrine’s other books to anyone who is looking to read interesting, informative, and entertaining books.

Wow what an amazing story of Karrine's life. A lot of things she wrote about in her childhood made me sad. Also some of the events that took place during her adulthood were also depressing. After reading this story in just 2 days I understood her message to young women on why they should not pursue a career in the music industry. I may even read this story again because her story really stuck to me. Even though Karrine did some unspeakable things with a lot of men, I did not judge her actions at all. Also, it is not my place to judge anyone. It's clear after reading this book that she learned from her mistakes. I'm glad that Karrine put her faith in God to get her through obstacles. I recommend this book to anyone.

Karrine Steffans is to be admired for writing her story. Yes, she certainly has had a difficult childhood and life, and I hope she is able to claim a life free of drugs and alcohol for her son.

She tells us in graphic terms the loves and life she has led in the sex/porn business. She gives us names and dates and circumstances. This must be a relief for those she has named. She has kept secret the names of those she feels treated her well. That must be for the best.

I feel very sorry for this woman's life and it took great courage to tell it all. Writing her life story in this manner has left me with an uneasy feeling. It is not the life she has led, but what has she learned from this experience? Her life has been ugly, and her downward spiral with drugs and alcohol is the usual route for porn stars. This is not a life of glamour and fun, and this, Miss Steffans makes perfectly clear. She has been able to relate her story with clarity and precision. She is to be commended if she is able to change her life. Anyone reading this story would not for a minute dream of becoming a Hollywood Porn star. That is a blessing. prisrob