UK’s Observer Woman Magazine managed to snag diva Mariah Carey for its January 2010 issue. In this issue, the songstress discusses her breakout role as a social worker in the Lee Daniels directed film “Precious”, her insecurities and racism.

Check out these interesting excerpts…

“I am very insecure about my looks, and I always have been because of being mixed race [Carey's mother is Irish-American and her father was an African-American of Venezuelan descent]. It’s not so weird now, and everyone’s accepting it in a big way, but as a child I felt very, um, out of place and didn’t feel pretty. So taking on that character and having Lee make me older in the way he did, I guess it was freeing because I didn’t have to try in any way to look pretty, and you know, when you grow up with that type of insecurity you don’t always feel pretty.” It is an unexpectedly raw answer. Does she feel pretty now? “Sometimes I feel all right.”

Does she still experience racism? “Yes. It’ll be a mild thing that I’ll get over, but a friend said to me the other day: ‘Oh yeah, you’ll like her –she’s like you, she’s got a black husband’ And I’m like: ‘How many times do I have to tell you – my father was black. My mother’s white. In this country that makes you black, do you understand? I know I’m very light-skinned, but stop doing that!’ It’s one of those things that the world doesn’t quite understand. When I first came to Europe, everybody was asking me: ‘Why do you always have black people in your music videos?’ And I was like, errm, how do I answer this one?”

I just don’t understand why everyone is raving about her role in “Precious”, homegirl was in the movie for like five minutes. #Imjustsayin

Alicia Keys graces the cover of Giant magazine’s final print issue before the publication goes digital. The Grammy-Award winner discusses her father, her music career and her view on fans knowing about her private life. Check out this interesting excerpt:

Giant: For most of your career, you’ve been very successful at maintaining a private life. But do fans have a right to know about more about you?

AK:”I think with anything, we all need a place where we can close the door and be private. In your own room, in your own house, with your own thoughts. Do I know everything about you? No, and that’s cool. You want a person to know you, and it’s beautiful that people are so interested in your music that they’re interested in what your life is like and what you’re thinking, and what you go through, but…”. “When its just me? In own space with my piano? Nothing gets in the way…”

Sidebar: I kinda wish Giant would’ve gotten her to finally admit her relationship with Swizz.

Via Miss Jia

Amber says of working with Kanye:

“He’ll pick out something and he’ll be like ‘Babe, just … no.’ I’m more electric pink and bright yellow. And Kanye’s more like nude and bone. Like, bone is his favorite color. I’m like, whose favorite color is bone?”

She insists she isn’t Kanye’s “Barbie.” For example, Kanye wanted her to wear a gown to the 125th Anniversary Gala of the Met. Amber chose a white Alexander Wang wrap dress with a thigh-flashing slit.

“I didn’t want to wear a long gown,” Rose says. “So then we get to the Met and everybody has a long gown. I was like, great. I didn’t know what the Met was!”