She leads North Korea's answer to the "Spice Girls", was rumoured to have been Kim Jong-un's girlfriend, and was reportedly executed by firing squad.

Having been the subject of such fevered speculation for years, Hyon Song-wol was greeted by a barrage of camera flashes as she arrived in Seoul on Sunday.

The head of the Moranbong Band, the hugely popular North Korean girl band hand-picked by leader Kim Jong-Un, crossed the heavily fortified border into South Korea to check preparations for an art troupe she also leads during next month's Winter Olympics.

Appearing live on South Korean television, Hyon made no comment as she walked past a throng of reporters and onlookers before boarding an express train at Seoul's railway station for the eastern city of Gangneung, where her art troupe is to perform during the Pyeongchang Olympics.

The singer has been the subject of intense South Korean media attention since she attended last week's talks at the border that struck a deal on the art troupe's two performances - one in Seoul and the other in Gangneung.