Anne Marie used make-up as a "mask" when she was growing up.
Anne Marie
The 27-year-old singer revealed that she was so desperate to fit in with her peers that she would have such a heavy look "you couldn't tell what [her] real face looked like" and insisted that her make-up "took away [her] personality".
In an interview with Glamour, she said: "I wanted to fit in at school so much that I just did what everyone else did. Make-up was my mask: sometimes I'd slap so much on that you couldn't tell what my real face looked like. Doing this totally took away my personality and I withdrew into myself."
The 'Ciao Adios' hitmaker confessed that it wasn't until she went on tour with Rudimental that she wanted to "break down [her] self-conscious barriers".
She said: "Four years ago, I went on tour with drum-and-bass band Rudimental, who were the first people to see potential in me.
"They taught me so much and I started to regain my confidence. Then one day, on our bus, I looked over at Bridgette [Amofah, from Rudimental].
"She seemed completely happy and comfortable to be on her own, and in her own world. I remember thinking, 'Wow, there's no barrier there. She doesn't care what people think.' It made me want to break down my self-conscious barriers, too."
The '2002' singer has admitted that as well as getting therapy to overcome her issues with self-confidence, she looked to women around her, who are totally comfortable with themselves, to inspire her.
She explained: "As well as getting therapy, I looked at other women who were close to me - such as Jaz [Jazmin Sherman], my manager, and Jenn [Jennifer Decilveo], who I wrote my first album with.
"They embrace who they are, which has inspired confidence in me. It's been a journey - and one that I'm still on - my brain is overactive and I go through weird phases with myself."