Maps of Music

LISTEN TO MY HEART (2002)

Where the lyrics of LISTEN TO MY HEART take you, and where it was really made.

The album became the first record by a Korean artist to reach number one on the Oricon Albums Chart, and BoA's debut is credited with opening the door for Korean artists in Japan.

Key places

Recording in Tokyo (2002)

Recording site Tiny Voice Production — The album was recorded in various studios in Japan between 2001 and 2002. This point marks On Air Azabu Studio in Tokyo at city-level position. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Listen to My Heart: debut Japanese studio album (second overall) by South Korean artist BoA
• Released 13 March 2002 via Avex Trax
• Primarily a pop record with R&B influences
• Team of songwriters and composers including Natsumi Watanabe, Kazuhiro Hara, Ken Harada and Akira
• These collaborators later worked with BoA again on her future albums

Background

• Debuted in South Korea first, then signed with Avex Trax on 7 March 2001
• Same day, a showcase was held at the Avex-owned discotheque Velfarre in Tokyo, which Avex invested 700 million won in
• Journalists from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan gathered to cover the showcase
• Avex chairman Tatsumi Yoda said BoA had the charisma, dance moves and vocals to surpass Namie Amuro
• BoA released the special album Jumping into the World around the same time, with songs sung in English and Mandarin

Recording

• Recorded between 2001 and 2002 in various studios in Japan
• Mastered by Chris Athens at Sterling Sound in New York City
• Power, Don't Start Now and Dreams Come True were originally sung in Korean on Jumping into the World

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Kwon Bo-ah, born November 5, 1986 in Gyeonggi Province, was discovered by SM Entertainment talent scouts at a 1998 talent search while accompanying her older brother.
• After two years of training in vocals, dance, English, and Japanese, she debuted in South Korea in 2000 with the album ID; Peace B.
• Her Korean label arranged with Avex Trax to launch her career in Japan, and she quit school to prepare.

Career

• Her debut Japanese album Listen to My Heart (2002) became the first album by a Korean artist to debut at number one on the Oricon chart.
• Valenti (2003) sold over 1,249,000 copies, and Best of Soul (2005) sold over a million copies in Japan.
• Her self-titled English album (2009) was the first record by a K-pop artist to appear on the Billboard 200.
• She has sold over ten million albums and has been called the "Queen of K-pop" for helping open the Japanese market to Korean pop.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Debuted at number one on the Oricon Albums Chart
• Sold 230,590 copies in its first week
• Descended to number two in its second week, selling 140,150 copies
• Fell to number six in its third week, selling 100,970 copies
• Stayed in the top 300 for 91 weeks, BoA's longest-charting album to date

Reappraisal

• Journalists regard BoA's debut in Japan as having helped improve the image of South Korea in the country
• Many consider the debut to have opened the door for Korean artists in the Japanese music market
• Editors credit BoA with laying the groundwork for K-pop idols such as TVXQ, Girls' Generation, Exo and BTS to debut in Japan

Records

• First Korean artist and first non-Japanese Asian in history to top the weekly albums chart in Japan
• Sold 816,690 copies by the end of 2002, the 12th best-selling album of the year
• Certified million by the RIAJ for shipments of over one million copies
• Won Rock & Pop Album of the Year at the 17th Japan Gold Disc Awards
• Title track received the Gold Award at the 44th Japan Record Awards

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The Japanese adaptation of the title track for her debut Korean album is ID; Peace B, her first single in Japan.
• Every Heart (Minna no Kimochi) served as the ending theme to the anime Inuyasha and was released on the same day as the album.
• The single Every Heart (Minna no Kimochi) was the first Copy Control release in Japan.
• The Korean song Don't Start Now was re-recorded for the album and later released as a single in May 2002.
• The Meaning of Peace was originally a duet with Kumi Koda but was changed to a solo track on the album.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ko.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org

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