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Better is the tenth Korean-language studio album (twentieth overall) by South Korean singer BoA. It was released on December 1, 2020, by SM Entertainment, to commemorate her twentieth anniversary.[1] The album features 11 tracks, with the title song serving as the album's lead single.[2]

Better
Digital and Normal version cover
Studio album by BoA
Released	December 1, 2020 (2020-12-01)
Recorded	2020
Studio	SM Studios, Seoul
Genre	R&B Pop
Length	37:43
Language	Korean
Label	SM
BoA chronology
Starry Night (2019) Better (2020) The Greatest (2022)
Singles from Better
"Better" Released: December 1, 2020
Music video
"Better" on YouTube

Background and release

On November 5, 2020, SM Entertainment announced that BoA will come back with her tenth Korean studio album titled Better, two years after the release of her ninth album Woman (2018). The album release marks the singer's twentieth anniversary since her debut in 2000.[3] Preorders began the same day.[4] A music video teaser for the lead single "Better" was released on November 30.[5] The album was released on December 1, 2020, by SM Entertainment, through various music portals.[6] The accompanying music video for "Better" was released in conjunction with the album's release.[7]

I still can't believe that 20 years have passed since my debut, [...] it feels like people around me are giving more meaning to this than I am. Gearing up for Better, I tried to keep myself more lighthearted because I was afraid I might not be able to drop it now if I also put a lot of meaning into it and made it too weighty.

— BoA on the album and her 20th anniversary, The Korea Times[1]

"Better" is an alternative R&B written and arranged by longtime collaborator Yoo Young-jin. Alongside music production by Yoo, Aston Rudi, and Jay-Keyz, the song also contains a sample of "Like I Do" by Swedish singer AWA, who was given songwriting credits for the song.[8]

The physical album was made available for purchase on December 2, 2020, and has two editions: regular and limited.[9] The limited version was made available in two "special" editions: yellow and beige.[10][11][12] A few hours after the album's release, BoA held an online live show titled "Better BoA" which was broadcast through Naver's V Live channel, where she introduced songs from the album.[9]

Critical reception

Better received critical acclaim from critics upon release, with several publications listing Better in their rankings of best albums of 2020. It was ranked at number six on Metro UK's list The 20 Best K-Pop comebacks of 2020 and at number one on Billboard's The 10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2020. Billboard described the album as "one of her strongest records to date, and it's filled to the brim with songs that present her as someone assured in her artistry – its excellence is obvious."[13] Additionally, the track Start Over was named the number one Best K-Pop B-Side of 2020 by MTV, which explained that "BoA's tangy, raspy-edged timbre is a compelling match for the song's pleading urgency and breathless declarations of "You're gonna love me, let me start over."[14]

Accolades

Year-end lists

Critic/Publication	List	Rank	Ref.
Rolling Stone (India)	10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2020	10	[15]
Billboard	The 10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2020: Critics' Picks	1	[13]
MTV	The Best K-Pop B-Sides of 2020	1	[14]
South China Morning Post	The best K-pop solo albums of 2020	N/A	[16]
QQ Music	Top 100 K-Pop Songs of 2020	16	[17]

Track listing

Notes

• "Better" contains a sample of "Like I Do" performed by AWA.[8]

Charts

Chart performance for Better

Chart (2020)	Peak position
South Korean Albums (Gaon)[18]	9

Sales

Sales for Better

Region	Sales
South Korea (Gaon)[19]	17,371

References

На других языках

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- [en] Better (BoA album)

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[es] Better (álbum)

Better (estilizado en mayúsculas), es el décimo álbum de estudio en coreano de la cantante surcoreana BoA. Fue lanzado el 1 de diciembre de 2020, por SM Entertainment, para conmemorar su vigésimo aniversario de carrera.[2] El álbum incluye 11 canciones con «Better» como sencillo principal.[3]

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