Kwon Bo-ah, known professionally as BoA, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, and actress often called the "Queen of K-pop".
Born and raised in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, BoA was discovered by SM Entertainment talent agents when she accompanied her older brother, a music video director, to a talent search in 1998. She was trained for two years and made her debut with ID; Peace B. BoA has since released twenty studio albums, including ten in Korean, nine in Japanese, and one in English. On television, she appeared as a judge on the reality competition show K-pop Star, as an actress on the television drama Listen to Love, as a host for the second season of Produce 101, and as a coach for the third season of The Voice of Korea.
With the release of her debut Japanese studio album, Listen to My Heart, BoA became the first South Korean pop star to break through in Japan following the fall of barriers that had restricted the import and export of entertainment between the countries since the end of World War II.