Coco Austin Decoded: ‘There’s Not Just Beauty Behind Her Empire’

Though the adult revue was strictly a “Coco move” the star says that she and Ice sometimes collaborate on deals together — or just support each other’s ventures from afar, understanding that they have different audiences.

“Ice Loves Coco —  I wanted to do it but I had to convince my husband to do it,” she says. “I did it because people only knew me as a model and I wanted them to see me as more than that. I wanted them to see me as a family girl, a businesswoman, as a mother to my dogs. It’s like there were so many aspects that I wanted you to see me as more than a picture.”

“Pretty much Ice has his own type of fans and I have mine,” she continues. “Because he comes from a different category, gangster rap, I don’t have those fans. So we know that about each other. You know, he’s more in a hardcore world; I’m kind of more into light-hearted, you know, exotic world. It’s like, you know, mine is fitness, erotic modeling, that’s my side. They have maybe a couple fans that go back and forth amongst each other, between Ice and I, but they kind of stay in their lane. However, we are big supporters of each other from the sideline.”

For sure, the actress — who’s waiting to find out if “Ice Loves Coco” will be renewed for a fourth season — has come along way since her first $1,000-a-day modeling job.

“When I first started modeling  — this was before the Internet was really popular — and I was being paid to be on other people’s websites,” says Coco, who’s next venture is an indoor dog park in NYC. “I think the fee back then to do a whole photo shoot for a day was $1000. $1000 for a day. I thought I was like rich from that! I was an 18 year old girl, like, ‘Wow, I can make money from dressing up and looking cute for $1000 a day? I can do this.’ So I think the first thing I did was put it in the bank and start a new account.”

“I’m not a big spender,” she continues. “I like to save my money and see how much money I can actually make. And people don’t know between Ice and I, he’s the spender and I’m the saver, which is funny because even when we go shopping he likes to be a little extravagant and buy expensive things. I’m looking at the tags and I’m thinking I could probably get this cheaper somewhere else. It’s very funny. People would never guess — people probably think it’s the opposite but it’s completely me that’s a saver and I just don’t want my money to go toward nothing. Of course I’m a glitzy, blinged-out girl and my clothes and my shoes are very big to me, but pretty much the only thing I spend money on is shoes. A girl’s gotta have that at least, hello!”