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Poor Antonella Barba.
After a couple of weeks of intense media scrutiny, endless jibes and harsh comments from the judges, she was finally voted off American Idol last week, falling just short of making it to the coveted top 12.
And still the press won't let up about those racy photos that have made hers the most-searched name on the Internet at the moment (way ahead of a bald- headed Britney).
In a 20-minute conference call with international media on Saturday morning, Barba was (not surprisingly) badgered with questions about the photos.
"It's definitely not how I intended things to go," she said. "I tried to stay focused on the competition. All that other stuff was irrelevant."
To Barba maybe, but not to the reporters on the call: More questions on the topic prompted a representative from the show to plead with them to change the subject, saying "she's been through enough".
"I keep getting told that no publicity is bad publicity," Barba said. "But, you know, I'm not known for this thing that I want to be known for, which is singing."
Barba probably deserves some credit for sticking to her showbiz dreams despite the flak she has received and her unimpressive performances over the past few rounds on Idol.
She said she would remain in Los Angeles for the next two weeks or so to "talk to people, see what offers I can get".
"I want to strike while the iron is hot," she said.
One of the offers she won't be fielding is one that would see her appear in a Playboy spread.
"I definitely wouldn't do that," she said. "I don't want to be known for that."
Playmate status may not be on the cards for Barba, but she is not opposed to listening to other modelling or acting offers.
"I'd rather promote myself in a classy way," she said.
Asked whether she regrets joining the show after all that's happened, Barba would only say: "In retrospect, I still think it was worth it." - TODAY
WHAT: AMERICAN IDOL
WHEN AND WHERE: WEDNESDAYS, THURSDAYS AND FRIDAYS, 10PM ON MEDIACORP TV CHANNEL 5; AND 6PM AND 8PM ON STAR WORLD (STARHUB CHANNEL 18)
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