Born Nov. 5, 1986, in South Korea, Boa Kwon (Kwon Boa) is a native of Kyungkido Goorisi. She is 5-feet-4 and 99 pounds. Her family consists of parents, two older brothers, a sister and her cat, Sarah. Boa Kwon is a native Korean speaker who also speaks Japanese, conversational English, and has recorded songs in Mandarin. Her favorite movie is "Men in Black II." She also likes Winnie the Pooh, bubble tea and the song "Hot in Here" by Nelly and the Neptunes. Her life's motto is "work hard toward your goals." She is Catholic. Boa Kwon has also been spelled BoA Kwon, kwonboa, Gwon Bo-a and Gwon Boa.
At age 11, Boa Kwon accompanied her older brother to an SM Entertainment talent search. But the scouts took notice of her instead and offered a contract. SM wanted a star who would spread Korea's prestige abroad. The Japanese idol group SPEED had been sending girls around age 15, so SM wanted someone of similar age. Boa Kwon's parents initially objected to taking her out of school to pursue her entertainment career--she was an excellent student, and her parents wanted her to continue studying. But she convinced them and SM of her raw talent and passion for singing. After her parents consented, Boa Kwon spent two years of training in voice, dance, English and Japanese.
On Aug. 25, 2000, at age 13, Boa Kwon released her debut album "ID; Peace B." The album achieved moderate success, reaching the top 10 of the South Korean charts. In 2001, she released a mini-album "Don't Start Now" before taking a hiatus to focus on Japanese markets. BoA performed at the Tokyo disco club Velfarre before releasing a Japanese version of the single "ID; Peace B" in 2001. She then released "Amazing Kiss," "Konichiwa Tsutawaru" and "Listen to My Heart." After Sept. 11, 2001, she released her charity single "The Meaning of Peace." BoA released her debut Japanese album March 13, 2002. It became the first album by a Korean singer to top the Oricon charts.
Years 2003 to 2005 were a period of increased commercial success and changing style for Boa Kwon. Her early music had more of a cute, youthful style, but as she progressed through her teen years, she took a more sexy and sultry style approach. It was also a period of continued expansion into Japanese and Mandarin Chinese markets. BoA's 2003 Japanese album "Valenti" led to her first Japanese concert tour. Her 2004 Japanese album "Love & Honesty" was a change in style, containing rock-dance albums and harder R&B. Her 2005 compilation album "Best of Soul" made her the first non-Japanese Asian artist to have two million selling albums. And 2004's "My Name" was Boa Kwon's first venture into Chinese-speaking markets.
2006 to 2008 were a period of continued stylistic evolution for Boa Kwon. While early albums had more of an urban pop/upbeat dance quality, she had gradually begun experimenting with rock-dance, harder R&B and ballads. In 2007, she began using her own computer to compose songs, and in 2008, electro-pop began to influence her. During these years, BoA focused primarily on Japanese markets. Her 2006 single, "Nanairo no Ashita: Brand New Beat / Your Color" was featured on the XBox 360 game "Ninety-Nine Nights." BoA's 2007 album "Made in Twenty" represented her transition into a more mature artist and her 2008 album, "The Face," showed her taking more control of her music.
On Oct. 21, 2008, Boa Kwon made her American debut with her single "Eat You Up," which was successful on online music charts, later becoming a No. 1 break-out single on the Hot Dance Club Play Chart. She later performed it live at YouTube's Tokyo Live Concert, New York City and Anaheim, California. On March 17, 2009, Boa Kwon released a self-titled English album, later headlining at San Francisco's Pride Festival. She is also appearing on Japanese singer Crystal Kay's single "Girlfriend," featured on the Japanese version of "He's Just Not That Into You."
Boa Kwon's favorite musicians include Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Nelly, Britney Spears, Brian McKnight, Pink and Jay-Z as well as Whitney Houston, Jodeci, Kim Hyun Jung, Kim Johan and Seo Taiji. Boa Kwon's early albums such as "ID; Peace B" have more of an urban dance pop style while "Love and Honesty" has harder R&B tunes. Her desire to become a more mature artist has gotten a mixed reception. "My Name" in 2004 was not as popular as her earlier albums--many fans preferred her more youthful style. Paradoxically, Boa Kwon has also been criticized for being a manufactured pop star. Unlike many artists, BoA is not known as a singer-songwriter; most of her songs are handled by her staff. But BoA does not object and argues SM Entertainment had created the environment and conditions for her success.