Carey: 'Precious boosted my confidence'

Mariah Carey has said that playing a frumpy social worker in the film Precious has boosted her self-confidence.

The pop superstar, who shed her glamorous image to appear in Lee Daniels's screen adaptation of the novel Push by Sapphire, admitted that spending hours in front of a camera with heavy lighting and no make-up has made her feel more comfortable with staying natural at home, Contactmusic reports.

The 40-year-old said: "I think it was crucial to dress down. It was tough because making music videos is so different with the costumes, the angles, the lighting, stuff like that.

"In Precious, we sat in a fluorescent dentist's office and it was the worst-lit scene of the movie. The over-lighting emphasises the dark stuff under your eyes.

"I guess now I'll feel better about myself when I'm dressed normally at my house and walk past a mirror and see myself. I'll be like, well I've looked worse."

The singer also revealed that she identified with the story of the film because of her personal past.

Carey added: "The first relationship I was in, without realising it at the time, was abusive emotionally.

"That is in the past, but that helped me get to a place where I could grow and use that stuff in my work."

Precious is currently playing in the US and arrives in UK cinemas on January 29.