Angelea ANTM: The Untold Truth Behind Angelea Preston’s Disqualification

Angelea Preston and Tyra Banks ANTM
source: People

There was a lot of controversy surrounding Angelea Preston when she was on America’s Next Top Model. Over a decade later, Angelea ANTM is trending again to reveal more insights in a new interview.

Angelea was an aspiring model and actress before she was on America’s Next Top Model. During her time on the show, there were allegations that she worked as an escort. These allegations surfaced after Angelea won a modeling contract with CoverGirl cosmetics.

However, because of the allegations’ publicity, Angelea got asked to leave the show. After she left the competition, Angelea continued to pursue her dreams bearing the stigma. We will look at who Angelea Preston is and what happened to her during her time on ANTM.

Who is Angelea Preston?

Angelea Preston is an American model and reality television personality, best known for participating in cycle 14 of America’s Next Top Model. On June 17, 1986, Angela was born in Buffalo, New York. Later she competed on cycle 14 of ANTM. Angela did not win the competition, but she was one of the fan favorites throughout the season. 

After ANTM, Angelea continued to pursue her modeling career. She has appeared in several magazines. Angelea made headlines when she got disqualified from cycle 17 of ANTM just days before the finale. Back then, the producers did not reveal the reason behind her disqualification, but fans speculated that it had something to do with an alleged breach of contract.

Regardless of her disqualification, Angelea will always get remembered as one of the most memorable contestants on ANTM. Between 2003 and 2011, when Angelea left ANTM, she featured in one movie, Breathe, and a reality show, Made. She got married and had a son in 2o12.

Angelea is known to advocate for many causes, including animal rights and body positivity. She has spoken out about her struggles. Angelea Preston is a multi-talented woman who uses her platform to promote causes that strike her passion. She is an inspiration to many and will continue to be a force in the modeling industry for years to come.

Angelea Preston Makes it to Finale of America's Next Top Model Cycle 17
source: Pinterest

Angelea On ANTM Cycle 12

When Angelea first appeared on the show, she had to sleep in a bus terminal, revealing that other girls knew about her situation. She rubbed some of them the wrong way, including Sandra, which led to an argument between both participants called “toenails ugly.”

The conflict went unnoticed by Mr. Jay during deliberation; however, we all learned what he meant when Tyra mentioned their spat at the Greek Goddess photoshoot.

Angelea On ANTM Cycle 14

The show’s cycle saw the return of the biracial angel, Angelea ANTM. Many other girls recognized her from last season, and she impressed everyone with her new attitude. She earned a spot in The Top Model House after getting called later for the final cast during filming–and believe us when we say that this is one tough cookie who will not give up easily.

Even amidst the heated beef with Brenda, another contestant. Breanna was a nightmare to live with in the first week of their new home. She stared at her menacingly and called this the “Bitch please” look, making fun of how she wore her hair as two different people did on Sex and The City – one day, it looked like Chucky from Childs Play (the movie), then moments later Miranda.

The judges felt that Angelea’s attitude towards the competition may have been too defeatist. She had six top-three callouts and won see challenges but lost out in the final two episodes due to this mindset. Her record showed she was successful.

She failed at making it onto the next level because all focus seemed spent on what comes after “winning” rather than starting something new with the same intensity.

Read Related Articles: 

Top 10 hot girls on Instagram: Rihanna, Kylie Jenner, Chloe Bailey
10 black male models you should definitely have on your radar
These apps will help you find out how hot you really are

Angelea ON ANTM Cycle 17

Angelea is an “All Star” because people recognize her. She entered the Top Model house as one of 16 girls and appeared in the bottom two four times, including three weeks where she didn’t get eliminated. The finale of the competition was shocking with a jaw-dropping twist.

In one last runway show, Angelea was stripped of the winnings after filming ended because she wasn’t present for judging in Los Angeles; however, just Lisa D’ Amato got the title as the last girl standing. It left everyone wondering what was going on. 

The 3 million dollar lawsuit filed by Angelea against Tyra Banks and some team members has since gotten dropped by Preston with no headway in the case. She got disqualified for winning after Cycle 17, in which the producers saw the escort service she involved herself in before coming for the show as the roadblock.

it’s revealed in DailyMail interviews that this disqualification came from contest rules stating, “no professional activities.”

The Real Story Behind Angelea’s Disqualification

It’s been eleven years after cycle 17 of ANTM, but Angelea is ready to talk, and she spills it all in an interview with Bustle. After what felt like a rip-off, we can all put the saga behind her disqualification to rest. Imagine feeling like Angelea back then after filming the first finale that didn’t air.

In her words, “I screamed. I just could not believe it was me.” “I almost ran off the set. I was like, ‘Are you serious?!,’ breaking the fourth wall and looking in the camera.” This was the excitement she felt, with giddiness to sign the CoverGirl contract worth $100,000.

The other prices included a campaign for Express Vogue Italia spread and a guest correspondent gig on Extra. The future seemed bright, and she left the set-in high spirits stating, “Bye, y’all! Peace out! Y’all can go! I just won, and my life is about to start!”

We all know what happened next when all of Angelea’s hopes got dashed with the turn of events. The host, Tyra Banks, disqualified Preston under “unusual” conditions, and another model Lisa D’Amato got the coveted crown as the season’s winner.

She has kept the negativity bottled up all this while, but now her new tell-all gives new insights into what went down.

 What Made Preston Decide To Talk Now?

America’s Next Top Model is one of the most successful reality television shows. From fights with other contestants to the show of emotion that still makes headlines nearly two decades later. The program started a trend in the US and spread all around the world with several international spinoffs.

This interview got a little push during the Covid-19 lockdown, with so much time on everyone’s hands. And the availability of the ANTM on streaming. It revived interest in this show and its treatment of cast members. As fans returned to watch more episodes, so did talks about Preston’s disqualification.

She also began writing her memoir, which we all await its release. Then there is also the Instagram live series “Jay Chat,” with host J. Manuel and former colleagues who worked on ANTM. They dissected the show, and old wounds reopened because, asides from Angelea’s case, there were different allegations of maltreatment of models on display. 

In addition, it became clear to Angelea that fans were still not over what happened. The model said, “This one moment has been following me for a decade, and people want to know what happened.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Angelea Preston (@angeleapreston)

The Real Story Behind Angelea’s Label As An Escort

Angela struggled to get modeling gigs after competing in cycle 14 of antm. Being eliminated from the show was a curse since agencies didn’t want to hire her. The model struggled and had to move to Queens so that she could survive. When she was desperate for work, a stranger with an expensive car asked and noticed she was a model.

He said he could help and gave her his number. Down on her luck, she felt like it was a breakthrough when an easy job opportunity popped up. When she first met him, something about his manner made her feel odd—a sense of recruitment for modeling-related tasks unrelated to what he said.

Angela became forward and remembered asking him about the nature of the job. “I Straight up asked him if he was a pimp, and he was like, ‘Are you a ho?’ And I was like, ‘What? No.” When T offered to set up dates for Preston, he was initially skeptical.

However, after meeting two beautiful women with designer dogs and expensive watches (one wearing a Louis Vuitton bag), there’s no way she could say no! The first thing that stands out about this passage is how it starts by describing what kind of person would want their “benefits” through dating services.

She felt he was someone who doesn’t care much if they have sex or not because those aren’t benefits anyway? Angelea also describes the little details of each woman having flawless hair/nails. When T arrived, the other women told her they were going to a strip club.

That’s how they planned to find dates for the night. Preston didn’t want any part of it and offered menstrual cramps as an excuse not to join them. Preston had finally found a job but realized too late that it might not be so easy to get away. Only a few people knew her actual plans as she attributed her trip to a real estate agency.

Not having any money at hand to go back to New York only made everything worse by far. So she stayed back and followed the herd to South Beach, Florida.

The Abuse Story Of Angelea ANTM

Between following T around, it became clear that she had gotten herself involved in an organized prostitution ring. She fought against prostituting herself, and it didn’t sit well with T. While in the car with his friend and cousin, Preston openly refused to have sex. She didn’t understand how T expected this of her or that it was so inflexible.

Preston recalls T asking his cousin to exit the car. The model recounts He opened my side of the door, and all of a sudden, I felt a boom on the left side of my face,” she says. “[T] just punched me, and he broke the designer glasses I had on.”According to Preston, this assault went on for a while.

She endured the beatings and had sunken feelings thinking she got what she deserved. This feeling prevents Angelea from taking up her abuser to the authorities. When their pack headed to Las Vegas, her friend, and winner of cycle 14, Krista White, asked to meet up since she lives in the same city. 

Angela had to cancel with T’s orders, and Krista immediately understood that something fishy was going on. However, after s few days of convincing, Angelea could meet up with her friend under the supervision of T. With everything that she has been through, Angelea still chooses to go back to T even with White offering her a plane ticket escape.

 It took about a month before Angelea came to her senses and decided to leave T when they traveled to Long Island. She snuck out of the hotel when T wasn’t around and went back home to the start afresh. 

Was Tyra Banks Aware of Angelea Being An Escort Before Coming Back To Cycle 17?

According to Krista White, when she failed in saving Angelea from T, she could not rest, so Krista tried other options. She recalled reaching out to higher-ups in the modeling industry, including Tyra Banks. Some of her contacts yielded fruit as they offered to help. However, Banks did not respond, which set a bad light for a woman who claimed to be all for the good of young girls. 

A few months went by, and the time came to audition for the new season of ANTM. Although Angela did not ask to be in the show, she received an invitation to join the competition, because it was for the ‘All Star’ edition. Having just escaped the horrible ordeal and trying to get her life in shape, Preston jumped at the offer and accepted the offer. 

A weird conversation with Michelle Mock, the supervising talent manager, rubbed wrong on Angelea. She states that Mock mentioned things like, “What have you been doing to get money?” “Were you being pimped?” While these questions came as a surprise to Angela because she had no idea back then that Krista had contacted ANTM for help.

This interview made the conversation become clear and confirmed something else. The alleged conversation confirmed that for Mock to be aware of the activities she had gotten herself involved in, the producers, like Tyra Banks, were also conscious.

Preston also states that other team members even mentioned words like “We heard what happened to you.” Amidst these, she never got any confirmation from Tyra if she knew the story not until her disqualification right at the taste of victory. 

Will Angelea’s Story Change Anything?

At this point, the former model only hopes to rewrite history and clear up the slander on her name. Angela also hopes that Tyra and other people in charge of ANTM would own up that they snatched up her winning unjustly. Tyra has never opened up and addressed Preston’s claims, and she only cleared the air on Tamron Hall Show when the speculations of contestant maltreatment went viral.

“I was still a model, not a retired model yet, and still operating in this world that had so many rules.” “I was trying to push boundaries but was also torn to try to make sure that these girls could work … like, ‘Oh, break beauty barriers,.’ But yeah, I can break them all I want on the show, they’ll graduate from the show, and they won’t work.”


Where is Angelea Preston Now Post ANTM?

After the show, Angelea was in all magazines like Artvoice and Fashionista. She also modeled for Keratin Earth after her successful runway spot. She got signed to a modeling agency during her pregnancy. Preston gets up early that morning to work at a local radio station—this job she’s been holding for the past few years.

In 2012 Angelea moved back to Buffalo and raised her son while pursuing an undergraduate degree in journalism from Buffalo State College. She finally graduated in 2021 and enjoyed hosting the Sunday show for WBFO. Angela lives a quiet life with her husband and son back in her hometown. 

Conclusion 

Angelea ANTM’s story carries lots of talking points, but from it, we take you too can learn a few life lessons. Preston now feels less ashamed to talk about the sex work and her overcoming the setback it caused. We hope Angela finds the peace she deserves after all these years of hurt.

She remains the only girl in ANTM history to be a contestant on three different cycles. Angelea is an inspiration for other young women. Remember, any case of sexual abuse should get reported to the authorities. So, if you notice any form of abuse or go through it, please call 911. 

Also, read our latest articles:

Karma Spa: A Guide To Their Facials, Massage, And Specials
Astrological Compatibility Between Taurus And Cancer
Best 10 Human Hair Wigs Worth Every Dime And Tips On How To Care For Them

Fanti Tukuwei
I'm a fashion, beauty, and lifestyle enthusiast, and the ultimate curves queen. Here, I share beauty, fashion, and lifestyle tips to teach, inspire, and give confidence to all women.