Korean Pop Star BoA Next To Seek U.S. Stardom

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NY1's Lewis Dodley profiles Korean singer BoA, an Asian pop star hoping to make it big in the United States.

Her name is BoA – and she's wrapped around the hearts of millions of fans all over Asia.

In 2000 she released her first album at the age of 13 for SM Entertainment. It reached the top ten in Korea, but her company's master plan called for something bigger.

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One year later she moved to Japan, where she mastered the language and released "Listen to My" Heart." It debuted at number one on the charts and made her a household name in that country.

Her second Japanese CD, called "Valenti," sold more than a million copies and solidified her as a superstar. The singer was mobbed wherever she went.

"The first time I was in Tokyo, I just walked around," BoA says. "After my first album came out in Japan, I couldn't walk around that much."

BoA's star was also shining bright in Korea, as fans watched her grow up before their very eyes. And 20,000,000 records later, SM decided it was time for America.

More than 200 journalists from around the world were there for the announcement that BoA would make her debut in the United States.

"Every artist has dreams about the American market," she says. "Yeah, I wanted to go to America and my company did to, so we think we've made a really good album together and now it's happening."

BoA teamed up with producer Sean Garrett, who churned out hits for the likes of Usher, Chris Brown, Beyonce and Whitney Houston. She debuted in America with the single "Eat You Up" – another deviation in BoA's ever-changing style, produced by Henrik Jonback.

"In Asia I've sung ballads and mid-tempo songs, but for my first album in English doesn't have any ballads so my fans may be a little bit surprised," BoA says with a smile. "But I just wanted to focus on dance music for this album. And when I go back to Japan or Korea I have to make their style music, so I think that's a little of the difference but I just want to keep my musical style."

So after nine years of constantly evolving, which of her long list of songs best describes BoA?

"I like 'I Did It For Love'," she says. "But I feel like 'Energetic' describes me even more."

Now only time will tell if that energy will pay off in the form of stardom in America.