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| BoA |
Last month, 500 members of the media gathered for the debut of singer BoA at the Roppongi club Velfarre.
Although it may seem that an unusually named pop idol is born in Japan every minute, this occasion was different. Engineered by a major Japanese label, this was the debut of a 14-year-old starlet from South Korea. BoA not only displayed impressive singing and dancing talents but admirable linguistic skills as well -- she handled interviews in Korean, Japanese and English.
"Since she is trilingual, we will treat her the same way as the J-pop singers and promote her as an international artist," said Tatsumi Yoda, chairman and CEO of record company Avex. A Japanese version of BoA's debut single, "ID: Peace B," which is already in the top 10 in South Korea, will be released locally in May, and Avex USA will release an English version in the States this month. Her first album, produced by a renowned hit-maker team, and a Japanese television commercial featuring the singer are also on the way.