She has quietly become one of the decade's best-selling artists, has a third No.1 album in the charts — and debuts as an actor in the film opening this week's Cannes Film Festival

Somehow her profile is as understated as her smoldering voice. But by stealth, Norah Jones has invaded the mainstream in a few short years, joining that exclusive group of artists who have sold more than 30 million albums worldwide. As if such success, four side-bands and a reinvented solo style weren't enough to keep her busy, the velvet-voiced 28-year-old singer of simmering jazz and country songs last year tried her hand at acting. Not just any old bit-part, mind you. Jones has the leading role in "My Blueberry Nights" — the first English-language movie by Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai, and Wednesday's scheduled opener for year's 60th Cannes Film Festival.

"It was really scary the first week of the shoot," admitted Jones as she chatted to The Japan Times during a recent rare trip to Tokyo. "But everybody was really nice, and as we kept doing it, I got really comfortable. It was just a really good experience. It's nice to do something completely different, and for me to have the opportunity to work with a director like that is pretty amazing. So it was really, really cool."