It’s been a rough couple of months for global girl group KATSEYE, so much so that we have to ask: is everything okay?
For one thing, the KATSEYE girls are dropping like flies. On Monday, August 17, fans noticed that member Megan Skiendiel was missing from a fan signing event promoting their third EP, WILD. Only half of the six-piece was present: Lara Raj, Daniela Avanzini, and Yoonchae. That same day, Skiendiel told fans on Weverse that she was “feeling a bit under the weather” and took the day off.
This comes just after the release of WILD on Friday, August 14, which was launched with the music video for the track “Hootie Frutti” and a debut live performance of the song on NBC’s Today Show. Skiendiel performed with Raj, Avanzini, and Yoonchae, but members Sophia Laforteza and Manon Bannerman were notably absent.
The week before then, Laforteza said that she was taking a temporary break from promotional activities. “I’m realizing that if I don’t take care of my mind and body now, I won’t be able to keep doing what I love the most for so long,” she said in a statement.
In February, HYBE x Geffen, the joint venture managing KATSEYE, announced that Bannerman was on a “temporary hiatus” to focus on her health and well-being. But by then, some fans had already suspected that the Swiss singer would permanently leave the group, noting her history of absences from rehearsals and training sessions on the survival show Pop Star Academy.
Why Critics Are Calling ‘WILD’ KATSEYE’s Weakest Release
Consequently, Bannerman wasn’t present for the recording and release of the critically panned WILD. But maybe it’s for the better. Pitchfork points out that, though the girls insist in interviews that they’re getting closer to their truer selves, the tracks on the EP are all jacked from other references, whether it’s Charli XCX’s “Bel Air” demo or Brazilian phonk, and waters them down.
“These songs have a beautiful hollowness that comes from making music about things that could’ve been performed by anyone else and mean nothing to you,” writes Pitchfork critic Kieran Press-Reynolds. NME’s Rhian Daly also says, “It feels like the EP overcorrects for venturing into territory that might be divisive by driving back into sounds that are incredibly safe,” pointing to the Ed Sheeran-written “Animal” (which, to me, sounds too much like Fifth Harmony’s “I’m in Love with A Monster,” from the Hotel Transylvania soundtrack).
Fans are particularly divided over the release of “Hootie Frutti,” a bass-heavy track with a really thick and nasty Brazilian phonk beat that tries to distract you from worse parts of the song, like the incomprehensible accent and lyrics about matcha, $20 smoothies in L.A., and the titular hootie frutti (which, I gather, is supposed to be safe-for-work sexual innuendo).
2025’s “Gnarly” was similarly divisive, but to KATSEYE’s credit, it was easy to pick up on the tongue-in-cheek songwriting through the post-hyperpop production and nonsense lyrics. But it looks like HYBE x Geffen’s takeaway from the track’s success was to release more music that takes from emerging electronic sounds and more nonsense, sans the irony and interiority. As Press-Reynolds says, “Is this their raw, authentic selves?”
Growing Pains, Not a Group in Crisis
KATSEYE has enjoyed a meteoric rise since their 2024 debut, their latest feat being their first-ever Coachella set in April. But with it, they endure growing pains that HYBE x Geffen and the larger idol machine don’t allow them to sit with and understand. These girls, in their late teens, had their excruciating journey to stardom broadcast on streaming and were thrust onto the global stage, in front of loving and scrutinizing audiences alike, long before they even became KATSEYE. As young women, they’ve had to let the adults around them decide everything for them, from creative direction to their sound.
But all these perceived career missteps and controversy read to me like they’re just figuring things out. It’s more helpful to see KATSEYE as an emergent girl group deep in the throes of an early pop career, unsure of itself but learning, than a group that’s already made it and is en route to disbandment (as some fans have catastrophized). Most of the women are in their early 20s, and Yoonchae just turned 18. I think some grace can be afforded by both the management and the audience.
Frequently Asked Questions
KATSEYE officially has six members: Daniela, Lara, Megan, Yoonchae, Manon, and Sophia.
On February 20, 2026, HYBE x Geffen announced that Manon Bannerman was on a “temporary hiatus” from KATSEYE activities to focus on her health and well-being. On August 7, 2026, Sophia Laforteza also said she was taking a break for similar reasons. Megan Skiendiel also took a day off from promotional activities on August 17, 2026.
KATSEYE has three EPs: SIS (2024), BEAUTIFUL CHAOS (2025), and WILD (2026).
The WILD tracklist includes “PINKY UP,” “Animal,” “Hootie Frutti,” “Bel Air,” and “That Way.”
Neither the KATSEYE members nor HYBE x Geffen have given set dates for the return of Sophia Laforteza and Manon Bannerman.
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