Ayumi Hamasaki Sekai - [article][Lena Park] Getting back to her musical roots

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Korean-American R&B singer Lena Park says singing is in her genes.

"Everybody (in Korea) goes to karaoke," she said in a recent interview in Tokyo. "You see many grandmas singing while walking in the park. Also there is a stereotype in the United States that every Korean person learns to play the piano or violin. They are passionate about music."

In the past few years, Japanese audiences have been able to share that passion, as Park has divided her time between South Korea and Japan.

Since her debut in South Korea in 1998, Park has drawn a strong following. All her concerts there have sold out, and her five albums made the top five on the country's charts.

Park has also attracted Japanese fans since her collaboration with J-pop artists Chemistry and Sowelu for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

She released her third album here in June, "Cosmorama" (United Asia Entertainment), with songs in Japanese for the first time.

October saw the release of her new single "Jealousy" (Universal Sigma). The song, which has both Japanese and English versions, was used in a TV commercial here for SK-II cosmetics. Park, 30, provided the lyrics in English while co-writing the music with Japanese producer Satoshi Takebe.

Read it: In Sight/Music & Arts:Getting back to her musical roots