Karrine’s Grandmother Speaks
VIVIAN OVESEN, Karrine’s maternal grandmother who is referenced in the book and who was largely present during Karrine’s childhood in St. Thomas, was asked to share her feelings on the publication of Confessions of a Video Vixen and Karrine.
How do you feel about Karrine and her success with Confessions of a Video Vixen?
Karrine’s family and friends here in St. Thomas are extremely proud of her and all she has accomplished. So many people go through their lives with the weight of their secrets and lies, never being completely happy—especially women, who often end up bitter as we grow older, unable to receive or give love. For the rest of her years on this earth, she will be lighter in her journey and when she is a very old woman, and goes home to God, she will not go with the weight of her sins on her back.
Karrine writes in her book that she’s always loved to perform and write. Are you surprised that she is now a bestselling author?
From the time she was small, this is all Karrine ever wanted to do. She would write and perform her own plays and poetry around the island at big events, for the governor and local schools…winning awards for most everything she had done. I was there with her when she was dreaming of becoming a writer of books, and to see her accomplish this so early in her life makes those of us who supported her very proud. God knows so many of us women have pasts that may be repulsive to others, but how many of us who have been misguided, abused, and abusive can admit it, write about it, and publish it for the whole world to read? How many of us are honest with ourselves about ourselves? This makes me proud; to see Karrine in all her honesty and glory.
What do you hope for Karrine as she goes forward in her life?
Confessions of a Video Vixen has given Karrine a way to reach so many people with the message of unashamed truth; the message of letting go of what has been done and starting anew. Never again will it take a man to define who she will be and never again will she be stifled. The world has opened its arms to her and she will give them more to think about, I am sure. She is on her own now and no one needs to take care of her. The way it all works out in the end proves that confession is good for the soul.
Author Q & A
Your address book must read like a Who’s Who of the entertainment world. You know a lot of celebrities from the hip hop, sports, and movie industries, some of whom grace the pages of Confessions of a Video Vixen. Why write a book about your encounters with them now?
Confessions of a Video Vixen is not a book about my encounters with celebrities, or anyone else for that matter. It is my life story, thus far, which just so happens to include some people you may have heard of. Confessions is a story of a maladjusted young girl who grew into a confused and misguided young woman. It’s a story of failure and triumph with the message that how one’s life begins doesn’t determine where one’s life will go.
The cover copy calls this a “cautionary tale.” Whom do you want to caution? And what do you want to caution them about?
Confessions is a story for the masses. There is something in it for everyone; however, I hope to influence those who may be a bit like me: young, impressionable women who lack guidance and self-confidence. I am honored and privileged to be able to share my story and the lessons that are packed into it, such as learning to be comfortable in your own skin and not needing a man or money to define you. It is a story of hardships and the discovery of self with lessons about being unafraid of who you are, regardless of the shame others try to impose on you. Not everyone’s pitfalls are the same, but many times the end results are. We all have a story to tell and we should try to help as many others as we can; it’s part of the healing.
You ran away from home as a young girl and eventually found yourself seeking fame and fortune in Los Angeles. In some ways this is a classic story. Did you encounter many other young, impressionable women like yourself in Los Angeles?
Everyone in Hollywood is seeking fame and fortune; it’s in the water here. Everyone from young women to old men—they all want it. I have met a few, and the sad part is that they are still right where I met them. Seeking this lifestyle is like playing Russian roulette. If this is not your fate, it will be your curse.
You’ve survived rape, physical and substance abuse, and low self-esteem—yet you’re still standing. What advice would you give to readers for whom life has been difficult and full of obstacles?
The most important things I have learned through all of this are to never be ashamed of who you are and to not allow what you have done, or what has been done to you, define who you will be in the future. I have learned that it’s okay to change and to want more out of life, even and especially when others say you are not worthy of it. I tell my friends, and anyone seeking advice, to decide what you want to be in life, say it out loud, declare it, and spend every waking hour working toward it. We are worth it, and just because others may not see it doesn’t mean it’s not so.
What do you think of the industry’s treatment of women? Is hip hop sexist?
The entertainment industry is vast and is a reflection of the society we live in. I believe what’s happening in hip hop now would be a disappointment to its founders, as it’s so filled with ignorance and hate. It has done exactly what those who oppose this culture have always wanted it to do—enforce self-hatred among its people. Somewhere in corporate America, someone is laughing at us—at how we degrade our own women and poorly influence our youth. We, African Americans, no longer have slave masters but have become slaves to ourselves through the hip hop industry’s recycling of the same ignorance and hate that brought us to this continent in the first place. Maybe that’s a bit too political a thought, but it’s how I feel. There are certainly exceptions to this theory of mine. There are artists who are truly artists, and those of us who seek more out of our music applaud them.
You have a very nonchalant attitude toward sex; it’s almost European. What accounts for that?
I am from St. Thomas, one third of the islands that make up the Virgin Islands. The VI was once a property of Denmark, which is where my great-grandfather was from. The island as a whole, as well as most of the islands in the Atlantic, still lives by European standards. Our education and way of thought and consciousness are very different than here in the U.S. We ran around the beach naked as children, and it was commonplace to see the women of the island wrapped in sarongs and walking around the island barefoot. We are a free people, natural in all our ways. Sex is an inevitable fact of life. It is nothing to be shamed of, or coy about. It is that same shame that prohibits many of our young people from confiding in their elders about sex, and in this day and age of disease, shame can be deadly. I am happy I don’t have that shame, and hope to share my openness on the subject with my son, so he will always come to me first.
You credit God with saving your life. Speak to the role of prayer in your emotional evolution.
I’ve been blessed with the ability to seek a power higher than myself. I used to wish that this would have happened to me sooner, but now I realize the fact that it has happened to me at all is a blessing in itself. I have so much further to go in my discovery of self and in God, and I pray every day for the strength, faith, and courage I will need to get there. Life is a lot easier when you realize that you’re not in control of it all. I have learned to be still and to let the world move around me. I have come to an amazing place of peace and acceptance because of my faith in God and prayer. Who and what else can be credited with bringing me out of my own personal hell and to the heavenly space that I occupy now? I have no desire to please anyone but myself and the Lord. He knows I am a work in progress and if He accepts me, who else matters? It is nothing short of amazing when you come to a place of willingness. I have so much more to learn, and look forward to the spiritual journey ahead.