BoA by itself is kinda ugly too.

anyway, I just call her Utada (OOH-TADA) 'cuz its nicer than Hikaru. It's more interesting and as she said herself 'it sounds like a brand'.

UTADA ... new line by H&M .... in stores now

HAHA... no i think that :
- first in Japan you put the last name before (UTADA Hikaru, HAMASAKI Ayumi, KODA Kumi...)
- in a second time US people (I don't know if it's the same for UK and Autralia) use a lot the last name to call somebody

=> So I think that those facts explains why several people says UTADA (and not Hikaru or Hikki)

HAHA... no i think that :
- first in Japan you put the last name before (UTADA Hikaru, HAMASAKI Ayumi, KODA Kumi...)
- in a second time US people (I don't know if it's the same for UK and Autralia) use a lot the last name to call somebody

=> So I think that those facts explains why several people says UTADA (and not Hikaru or Hikki)

LOL....I pronounce her name as U-Tada not Ooh-tada. I don't like it....lol

But "Ooo-tada" is the Japanese pronounciation. "You-tada" is how Americans who don't know any Japanese would say it. XD

Kwon BoA is a beautiful name in Korean! You have obviously never heard it spoken. It's so much softer than most Korean names.

In fact, generally speaking, all of the names in this discussion sound 100 times more beautiful with their proper pronunciations. All of these butcherings are so hard to listen to.

I feel like if people are going to be fans of foreign music, they need to take the time to learn a little bit about the language and culture in question. Nothing annoys me quite like fans who think "Koda" is Kumi's given name, or that Utada Hikaru's family name is pronounced "Yu-ta-da".

^that kinda bothers me too...

saying it like You-tada annoys me and hurts my ears. Her name is beautiful the way its naturally said.

I see....but most foreigners like me can help but think that their given name are their last name...in the US we refer to each with the 1st name than last and when we look at wiki or on websites like this one and see that their last name is said first, we think that it's their first name. I know I DID...confused me for weeks!!!:headache

Also, I don't know if it's rude or not but I say Yu-ta-da anyway. I guess I see it as a better taste in/for her name. (God, am I making sense right?! XD) And WON BoA...:shakehead, It's soo.....IDK! lol

I think Hamasaki Ayumi sounds better and more natural than Ayumi Hamasaki. In fact, Japanese names sound better in their natural arrangement (surname first and then given name). There is a reason why they've kept the system for centuries.

Really, it's just a matter of familiarizing yourself with a foreign language and culture.

Luv Venus, you have to hear Kwon Boa pronounced by an actual Korean. It sounds fine.