In a significant development for the global music scene, Katseye—the multinational girl group formed through HYBE’s 2023 reality competition The Debut: Dream Academy—has announced member Manon Bannerman’s temporary hiatus for health and wellbeing reasons. The 23-year-old Swiss vocalist addressed fans directly through the group’s WeVerse platform, emphasizing she remains “healthy” while acknowledging that “sometimes things unfold in ways we don’t fully control.”
The decision follows extensive deliberations among all six members—Bannerman, Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, Sophia Laforteza, and Yoonchae Jeung—with their labels HYBE and Geffen Records expressing full support. The announcement comes shortly after Katseye’s notable Grammy Awards appearance, where they received nominations for Best New Artist and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their single ‘Gabriela’.
Despite Bannerman’s absence, Katseye confirmed they will honor scheduled performances while awaiting her return. The group’s statement emphasized their “commitment to showing up for one another and for the fans who mean everything to us.” No specific timeline has been established for Bannerman’s comeback.
This development occurs against the backdrop of the group’s meteoric rise since their June 2024 debut single, which spawned two successful EPs (SIS and Beautiful Chaos) and numerous singles. However, their rapid success has been accompanied by severe online harassment, with members previously revealing they’ve received thousands of death threats since formation—a phenomenon Lara Raj described as “jarring” and “dystopian,” while Bannerman characterized the experience as “very terrorising on the mind.”