Mariah Carey can point to yet another person who didn't see her 2001 flop Glitter: the director of Tennessee, her new movie.

Carey will play a waitress in Tennessee, directed by Lee Daniels, who produced The Woodsman and Monster's Ball.

"He's a risk-taker," Carey told Time for its issue on newsstands Monday. "Obviously it would be a risk in a lot of people's minds to cast me."

Carey's The Emancipation of Mimi was the best-selling album of 2005, helping to bury the pain of the 2001 film and soundtrack flop Glitter and her breakdown from exhaustion.

But with a tour under way, she's still busy. And she's keeping a sense of humour.

"I got a letter from a girl who said she was listening to one of my songs and every time I hit a particular high note, the garage door would open or close," she said.

The 36-year-old hopes doors continue opening for her. "There will always be parts of me that need emancipating," she said. "But it feels nice to allow yourself to be who you are."