SM Entertainment Invested $3 Million in BoA Before her Debut

Earlier today, SBS’s “Good Morning” aired a segment on SM Entertainment’s BoA. SM Entertainment’s talent agents discovered BoA when she accompanied her older brother to an audition when she was only in fifth grade.

SME’s founder Lee Soo Man stated, “At the time, we were looking for someone who had not yet entered junior high school. We searched throughout the country.” During the episode, he also revealed that debuting BoA was SM’s “secret project.”

As an elementary school student, BoA would train five hours during weekdays and ten hours during the weekends. She gave up her acceptance to a prestigious junior high school, where she ranked first for admissions, in order to pursue her dream as a singer. Lee Soo Man added, “At the time, we forecasted that we would need to invest approximately $3,000,000 to train her. However, our company didn’t have that much money, and we ended up getting a loan. Looking back, I don’t know if we could pursue something like that with such a big loan, but it was something we really wanted to try and challenge.”

Today’s episode of “Good Morning” also aired a segment documenting BoA’s illustrious career. In one interview, the then 14-year-old BoA stated, “In ten years, I think I’ll have a beautiful family. My dream is to be a good wife and wise mother.”