Snooki Isn’t Interested in Rewriting the Past—She’s Busy Building What’s Next

Nicole ‘Snooki’ Polizzi has spent most of her career being talked about, so what stands out on a recent episode of Coming in Hot with host Caroline Baudino is how clear she is when she finally gets to talk for herself. 

Snooki isn’t interested in relitigating Jersey Shore lore or pretending the chaos didn’t matter. She talks about work—real work. About filming nonstop and sleeping for a week afterward. About opening stores without a safety net because waiting for the “right time” never worked for her. About being confident enough to let people underestimate her and then watching them change their minds once they walk into one of her shops. The conversation is about momentum at its core—what happens when you keep moving forward even when the version of you the public remembers is frozen in time.

Below are the highlights from the episode, adapted from Coming in Hot.

What was the hardest part of filming the Jersey Shore lifestyle?

“Everyone’s like, ‘you guys are so lucky you get paid to party. You have the life.’ People would do anything for that. It was not easy, because obviously partying like that definitely takes a toll on your body. You’re exhausted, you’re tired. But other than that, like you’re filming 24/7 for 35 days. You’re literally just on camera the entire time. You don’t get time to yourself unless you’re in the bathroom, in the shower. We would take like two-hour showers just to get a break from the cameras and everything. It was mentally taxing and it was a lot, and you were exhausted. So when you got home, you literally slept for a week.”

How did you deal with tabloids and hate when you were young?

“I mean, it’s all over the news. The tabloids were big. They were talking horribly about us. Luckily we were all confident in ourselves that we were like, ‘they’re just jealous’…We were like, ‘at least they’re talking about us.’ You know, like, we’re doing something right…

…Some comments definitely get to you where you’re like, ‘Oh, that was really mean.’ Like you don’t even know me. You’re judging me off like a 30 minute episode. You have no idea who I am in real life. So some things do get to you.”

You met your husband on the show—what’s your advice for women who feel behind in that department?

“I was desperate. I was one of those desperate people. If you watch the first season of Jersey Shore, I’m like, ‘I’m going down the shore to find my husband so I can have babies.’ Like I always pictured myself to marry young, to have kids young, like I wanted to be a young hot mom. And that was the goal, to find my man and it just wasn’t working out. Three seasons in, I still didn’t find anyone. Like, girl, just calm down and just go out and enjoy yourself. You’re still young. Like I had to pep talk myself and be like, relax, you’re starting to get crazy now. Just go out and have a good time and he’ll just fall into your lap…

…I’m like, ‘This summer you’re just gonna go out and have fun. You’re not gonna try and find the perfect guy ’cause it doesn’t work out for you. So just go out and have a good time.’ And that’s the summer that I ended up meeting Jionni…I ended up calling him when I got home and we started hanging out and then I literally moved to his house like a month later, and it’s been that ever since.”

Would you ever be a stay-at-home mom?

“I do consider myself a stay-at-home mom when I’m not working. But I’ve been a stay-at-home mom to where Jionni’s like doing his real estate stuff and I’m not filming anymore and it’s just like a break for two years and I’m just staying at home with the kids, and I’m like, I need to do something…I was a stay-at-home mom for the two years, I was like, ‘I’m gonna do what I finally wanna do.’ I have the time, I’m home with the kids. I know it’s not easy to be a stay-at-home mom. I’m a stay-at-home mom now, and I run like 10 businesses.”

How did the Snooki Shop actually start?

“I worked in retail my entire life. My last retail job was Forever 21, and I just loved it. Forever 21 just opened and they were like, they just came out. So all the accessories, the clothing, and the stores were huge. Like we weren’t used to huge stores like that. It was just, it was the best experience ever. I was a sales associate. Then I did the register, I did all the things, I was stocking. So I was obsessed with working at Forever 21. And I was like, one day, if I have the budget or if I have the time, I would love to open my own boutique. That was always in my mind, even before reality TV…

…So obviously when the show happened and I did have the budget to do it, and I eventually had the time, I was like, I’m gonna do it. So I started off with the online store. I had that since the show started, maybe the second season. I had management, I had everything, and I was like, this is what I wanna do. Can you help me? So I ended up having the Snooki Slippers, and the person I was working with had a full warehouse. So he helped me store all my products and helped me run my store and just learn how to do online sales and everything.”

Are you naturally fearless and do you have anxiety?

“No, I’m definitely calm. I just started getting anxiety a couple years ago toward my children…It’s more OCD stuff, like touching things or touching things a number of times or praying at a certain time. So it’s more OCD with being a mother.”

How else did motherhood change you and what was the hardest part?

“I always envisioned myself to be a mom. Like that was the goal, right? To find a man and to have babies. But I was never good with kids. I was scared of babies. I didn’t know how to hold them. I was intimidated. But I always knew I wanted to be a mom…I was like, how am I gonna do this? Like, I’m nervous to hold a child. I’m gonna have a child. Like, is it gonna come naturally? Like what’s gonna happen? Then thank God once I had my baby, everything came naturally. If you’re not good with kids and you’re terrified, I was the worst with kids, but I knew I wanted to be a mom and right when I had my baby, it was natural. I was meant to be a mom…

…While I was pregnant I was terrified of giving birth, and I still was with Angelo and he was my third child, and I knew exactly what was gonna happen. You just never know what’s gonna happen…I’m not good with pain. I hate needles. I was just terrified. I had the labor shakes the entire time.”

What’s next that people don’t know about yet?

“Obviously Jersey Shore [Family Vacation] is coming out in January and we’re gonna be doing that show forever, so we’ll see what happens with that. I’m filming a new show in January in Canada. It’s a paranormal show because I love all the spooky and all those things, so I’m excited…I’m a medium. So nobody knows that part of me, so I’m excited to show people that side of me.”

To hear Snooki’s full conversation with Caroline Baudino, listen to Coming in Hot wherever you get your podcasts.

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