AMERICAN Idol contestant Antonella Barba exclusively revealed to The Sun that she is writing a tell-all book from a jail cell while serving her prison sentence.
The 33-year-old singer was sentenced to four-years in November 2019 after she pleaded guilty to trafficking 830 grams of fentanyl during her role in a Virginia drug operation.
The former reality star - who competed on season six of the hit show in 2007 - was arrested in October 2018 and pleaded guilty last July.
In the months since she was sentenced in November, Antonella said she has worked on her novel that included her time on American Idol.
“My book focuses on my life experience and what I've learned...everything from my childhood, to my American Idol experience, to my arrest,” she told The Sun.
She continued: “I have made some bad choices, but I came out better, healthier, and living a more stress-free lifestyle than before.
“I was so busy, caught up in the hustle and bustle of being successful, making money, the industry, that I got off course and wasn't focusing on the right things anymore.”
The performer added the tell-all will focus on the “hard lessons” she’s learned along the way and how she is bringing herself to “the right frame of mind.”
Though she does not go into further detail about what she will expose about the series, Antonella previously stated in the past that her time on Idol was part of the reason she ended up behind bars.
Documents show that in court her legal team tried to attribute her criminal behavior to her time on American Idol, saying: "One of the common themes is that the American Idol experience brought about a detrimental change in Ms. Barba's life.
"Ms. Barba's mother believes when American Idol happened and 'the world intruded and interrupted her... dream of a career in architecture' that this is 'where it all went wrong.'
"Ms. Barba's sudden move to Hollywood following American Idol 'was a recipe for disaster' and when it came to pass that Ms. Barba was unable to 'achieve the results she wanted, it was devastating to her.'”
Her attorney’s also argued she had minimal knowledge of the operation, saying: "The extent of Ms. Barba's involvement in this case is limited to delivering one shipment of drugs and that single instance forms the sum total of her relevant conduct.”
Antonella is reported to have been arrested after police waiting outside a stash house spotted her sitting in a car on her own.
A search of the vehicle later uncovered 830 grams of fentanyl in a shoebox in the footwell in front of the passenger seat.
Fentanyl is a drug intended for use as a painkiller, but is also used as a recreational drug - often mixed with heroin or cocaine.
The Los Angeles native appeared on the sixth season of American Idol in 2007 - when she was 19-years-old - and made it to the Top 16.
At the time, the original superstar trio of judges - Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson - were still on the show.
Antonella also told The Sun that she has since been “focusing on career plans.”
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“I've written some of my best songs in prison. I can't wait for them to be heard,” she said, adding: “I’ve got nothing but time.”
The reality show alum said she would not have been able to get through this trying time without her family.
“They have stuck by me through everything and I'm in communication with them daily.
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“I also have incredible friends, who have been there since day one,” she gushed.
