Ice T, Coco quench thirst for reality TV

Published Jan 17, 2013

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When I mention the name Coco Austin, what is most likely to come to mind is the picture scandal the television personality and glamour model was involved in last month. But once you get to chat to her, the reality TV star appears scandal-free, pleasant and more than just another blonde, writes Munya Vomo.

 

I would say reality TV stars are by far the most complicated people to interview. Not to say they are complex individuals, but their line of work is still a new field that may be booming, but it has not made much sense to the thinking man.

Yes, you may be tempted to ask if it is real and those other kind of questions, but let’s just say it is real, you’ll still wonder why any of it is relevant. In reality shows, these stars try to tell us that they have perfect lives and functional relationships, making you and me wish we had a shot at their lives.

However, things always get interesting when something “unscripted” and unpleasant leaks out to the fans and the celebrity then has the onerous task of doing some damage control.

One example of this scenario is the Ice T and Coco Austin situation. We all know that they have what comes across as a beautiful and impenetrable relationship.

Their show, Ice Loves Coco, is doing well in the US, so much so that it is already on its third season, having only begun in 2011. He is busy with TV gigs such as Law & Order, making music and other business ventures, while she pursues her glamour modelling career and dancing, among other things.

They then document how they balance their incredibly taxing lives in their reality show Ice Loves Coco. So all is well in the “T” household. Or so we thought.

Last month pictures of Coco and the little known rapper AP.9 appearing rather cosy together surfaced on the Internet. As ex- pected, Ice T caught wind of this and wasn’t chuffed in the least.

People speculated that his 11-year marriage was over, but when we spoke to Coco recently, she said they were tighter than ever.

“I know people want to hear a crazy response of what my relationship with Ice is like, but I keep telling them the same thing – we are very good friends,” she said.

“Whenever we are together we talk for hours and we try to con- stantly be in each other’s work so as to support each other and find time to spend together.”

So clearly the AP.9 saga is over and the couple is choosing to focus on rebuilding their relationship. Ice really loves Coco. Since they have a reality TV show on air, it will be interesting to find out if this inci- dent is included in their future episodes. After all it’s meant to be real TV, right?

According to Coco, on Ice Loves Coco there is a limit to the amount of information they want to include in any given episode.

“We allow cameras around us at certain times during the week,” she revealed.

“We have them concentrate on the highlights of our lives and will not have them in certain moments or places such as the library or something,” she explained.

Every season of Ice Loves Coco takes about three to four months to shoot and balancing this with other engagements can be taxing.

“The most recent season was shot in two months and it really was a taxing experience,” she said.

Ice T’s 2006 album, Gangsta Rap, has an interesting cover featuring him lying naked with Coco, hinting at a healthy sex life. With Coco’s background in dancing and glamour modelling (ie sexy poses modelling) it is obvious she knows a thing or two about pleasuring a partner and wasn’t shy to to share her advice on that subject.

“Everyone is different so it is your job to find out what works for your partner. The things that work for me are not the things that would work for my friends.

“My advice to women especially is be the best in that department. If your man likes elbow licking then do just that. I know for a fact that men generally like flexibility so ladies, get into some serious stretch exercises,” she said casually.

We moved away from the bedroom chat to the outdoors and the dog kennels because anyone who knows Coco knows she is gaga about dogs, so much so she wants to start an indoor dog park where dog lovers can meet with their animals.

“The idea is to have VIPs come with their dogs in one location while their dogs socialise, too. New York temperatures are very extreme so we can’t do this thing outside.

“I am based in Las Vegas tem- porarily so I have put that idea on hold, but as soon as I return home we will pursue it,” she said.

Hers may be a luxurious life, but time is a luxury Coco often has little of. Despite the controversial pics with random rappers and explicit CD covers, Coco still manages to garner a steady following and in turn that gives Ice Loves Coco a stable audience.

 

• Ice Loves Coco airs on E! Entertainment (DStv channel 124) every Sunday at 10pm.

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