pole magazine 1 | Page 10

I n real life, as modest as they come, Gigi frowns on being called the “illest” pole dancer in the game, but does feel props are due where deserved. “I don’t say I’m the best because there is always room for improvement; plus there are other women who are sick on the pole with a gymnastics background and do more tricks than I do,” she said. “But if you compare all the components of being an exotic dancer: personality, stage presence, dance technique, and pole tricks- I’M THE BEST!” Though dancing is not a thing of the past for her yet, she looks back and has a few words of advice for new girls coming into the industry. Focus on a goal is where she starts, saying it’s easy to get caught up in the lifestyle with drinking, drugs, and fast money, but it’s important to rise above it. Her last piece is- Save your money, saying it’s the only way you’ll ever leave the lifestyle unless you’re magically “wifed up” by a man with a lot of money which can be either a dream or nightmare. “I have no regrets, but if I could have done anything differently- I would have saved more money,” she said. “My first year dancing I could have made $800 in a night and spent $700 in the mall the next day on an outfit that would be thrown in my locker at work by the end of the night! I had that- “I’ll make it back attitude”! Many dancers still live like that and you’ll never get ahead.” C areer wise, Gigi now has her own company called PoleFanAddicts (a play on the words Pole Fanatics). She teaches everything from lap dances to booty popping to advanced pole tricks, but with an aerob