What is Karrine Steffans's Net Worth?
Karrine Steffans is an author and former video vixen and model who has a net worth of $2 million. Karrine Steffans is best known for writing the "Vixen" series of books focused on her torrid experiences in the hip hop music industry. The controversial series includes "Confessions of a Video Vixen," "The Vixen Diaries," and "The Vixen Manual: How to Find, Seduce and Keep the Man You Want," all three of which made the New York Times Best Seller list. Steffans has also done some acting, having appeared in the 2003 action thriller film "A Man Apart" with Vin Diesel.
Early Life
Karrine Steffans was born on August 24, 1978 in Saint Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. At the age of 10, she moved with her family to Florida. Steffans had a brutal upbringing marked by poverty and physical and emotional abuse by her parents. When she was 16, she ran away and found work as an exotic dancer. Steffans eventually moved to Los Angeles, California in 1999.
Karrine Steffans in Houston, Texas (Photo by Monica Morgan/WireImage)
Video Vixen and Modeling
Due to her relationship with rapper Kool G Rap, Steffans was introduced to the hip hop music industry, and learned the ropes from other rappers. When she was 21, she made her debut as a video vixen in the music video for Jay-Z's song "Hey Papi." Steffans went on to appear in videos for such rappers as LL Cool J, R. Kelly, and Mystikal. She also did some print modeling, appearing in Smooth magazine and King magazine in the 00s.
Books
Having worked for many years as a video vixen, Steffans decided to write books based on her often troubled experiences in the hip hop music industry. Her first book, the tell-all memoir "Confessions of a Video Vixen," was published in 2005. In it, Steffans recounts her life from her impoverished and abuse-filled childhood to her career stripping and working as a video vixen. She talks about her various sexual dalliances with rappers, including Jay-Z, Usher, and Dr. Dre, and provides words of caution about the dangers of the hip hop music industry and the entertainment industry at large. "Confessions of a Video Vixen" was an immediate commercial success upon its release, debuting on the New York Times Best Seller list. Steffans released a follow-up book, "The Vixen Diaries," in 2007; it also made the New York Times Best Seller list. She landed another spot on the list with her third book, 2009's "The Vixen Manual: How to Find, Seduce and Keep the Man You Want."
In 2011, Steffans released her fourth book, "SatisFaction: Erotic Fantasies for the Advanced and Adventurous Couple." The following year, she served as the editor of the essay collection "Drink, Fuck, Sleep (Volume 1)," which focuses on regrettable sexual encounters involving alcohol. It was published on Steffans's own imprint, Steffans Publishing. She went on to write "How to Make Love to a Martin," which was published in early 2013 exclusively for Amazon Kindle. Steffans's next book, "Vindicated: Confessions of a Video Vixen, Ten Years Later," was released in 2015 a decade after the release of her very first book. Featuring a foreword by King magazine founder Datwon Thomas, the book talks about Steffans's legacy and her personal and professional development since entering the entertainment industry.
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A Man Apart
Steffans made her major acting debut in 2003 when she played Candice Hicks in the vigilante action thriller film "A Man Apart." Directed by F. Gary Gray, the film stars Vin Diesel as an undercover DEA agent named Sean Vetter who is out to get revenge on an enigmatic drug lord responsible for his wife's murder. The film also features Larenz Tate, Timothy Olyphant, Geno Silva, and Jacqueline Obradors, among others.
Personal Life
At the age of 17 in 1995, Steffans moved in with rapper Kool G Rap, with whom she had a son. The relationship was a turbulent one, marked by physical abuse that landed Steffans in the hospital. She went on to move to Los Angeles in 1999 to protect herself and her son.
In 2009, Steffans married actor and rapper Darius McCrary, known for his role as Eddie Winslow on the television sitcom "Family Matters." The pair later divorced in 2011 amid Steffans's relationship with rapper Lil' Wayne and her marriage to a second, undisclosed husband.
