South Korean pop singer BoA (17) has been invited to perform at the MTV Asian Awards as a representative of Japan, where she is based and hugely successful, as well as her home country. The double invitation is unprecedented, especially given the long-standing ban in Korea on Japanese pop culture. It has only been in the last couple of years, and more so since the World Cup was co-hosted in 2002, that there has been a thaw in Korea’s stance. BoA has been something of an ambassador between the longtime rivals. She is also considered to have a good chance of being invited to perform at the US MTV Awards. The Asian awards show will be broadcast from Singapore on February 14.