KATSEYE: An Intro

KATSEYE was formed by HYBE Entertainment in 2024 through the 2023 survival show Dream Academy, and yes, I can already hear you screaming, they are not technically a kpop group. They have six members (Sophia Laforteza, Manon Bannerman, Daniela Avancini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, and Jeong Yoonchae*), who represent four countries and a variety of backgrounds, and who range from 18 to 23 at time of writing. As of August 2026, Manon has been on hiatus for months, with doubts rising about whether she will return and what the circumstances around her departure are.

Here are my credentials: So, like a lot of kpop fans, I’d consider myself at least a casual fan of KATSEYE. I know a decent amount of their songs, a decent amount about them as people, and a sprinkling of context surrounding Dream Academy and online conversation about them. I’ll be talking a little bit about that going forward, where I feel like it’s relevant. (Also, important to note, while I’ve covered groups with young people before, this is one of the first times I’m covering a group that is all basically my age, which is…an interesting experience, to say the least.)

BUT as you may have guessed from the title, this isn’t a solo review, but rather one of my so-called co-pilot reviews, with my beloved little sister in queer (and EYEKON extraordinaire, basically since debut), Ella. You might remember her from my TXT concert review. I thought it would be fun to include two very different perspectives on KATSEYE, so we sat down with our popcorn and our big girl analysis glasses and decided we’d do it together. Part 1 is going to cover the first two EPs, basically everything before Manon’s hiatus, and Part 2 will start with Internet Girl.

You still with me, after all of that? Great. Let’s get into it!

*No one else will care about this but I’ve seen Yoonchae’s name spelled as “Jung”, “Jeung”, and “Jeong”, and as Hangul doesn’t share our alphabet and I’m only a beginner, I wasn’t sure which to use. I’ve seen Jeong more and it sounds closer to how I was taught to pronounce “정윤채”, so that’s what I’m going with. 한국 사람들이, 미안해요, it’s totally possible that I’m completely wrong.

Single #1: Debut

*taps mic* La. La la. La la la la la. La. La la. La la la la la. If you read that line and the melody for KATSEYE’s Debut is now pounding in your eardrums, my apologies. It’s been stuck in my head for a week. Though the verses, especially the first one, still make me roll my eyes when I really think about them (pray tell, what does “I don’t need no 123, not Bourgeoisie, I’ll step in” mean?), with the benefit of looking back, I think Debut has aged pretty well. And a lot of that is due to its chorus, goofy though it might be, which is delivered with such pure teen girl pop dedication that you kind of can’t help but be swept along.

My biggest issue with it is that I wish it was longer, really; it needs more room to breathe and to build up to the chorus. A bridge, a bit of space, and I think it could be even better. As it is, Debut is only two minutes and three seconds—now the shortest single I’ve ever reviewed on the blog, beating my beloathed, Jennie’s Like Jennie. Despite my nitpicks, though, Debut has made me think of Ella since the time I appeared outside her house blasting it on my car speakers and yelled “IM TAKING YOU TO A CONCERT”, as one does.

And speaking of Ella, she mostly agrees: “Debut is a cute enough song. For a debut song, it accomplishes what it needs to: a catchy chorus, cute dance, and sweet music video featuring everyone having fun. It’s simple and fun, with easy lyrics that are not meant to really be thought about too much.”

Something I do also want to mention: while there are a few eyebrow-raising choices in the music video for sure—-the shot up Sophia’s legs when she jumps over the camera, some of the hip pops in the choreo, the shot up Yoonchae (who was 16 at the time)’s stomach—but mostly, this is pretty par for the course when it comes to music videos. Each of the members are showing their stomachs at some points, or wearing low-cut tops, or whatever, but mostly, they’re dressed like me and the girls I go to school with, in jeans, crop tops, sneakers, and so on. I’m just putting this paragraph here for what I’m going to talk about later, so keep this in mind.

Single #2: Touch

If your hands don’t activate into choreography sleeper agents when you hear “’cause you been so out of touch, touch, touch, touch, touch”, I envy you, truly. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same. Besides its ruin-your-life ear worm of a chorus, I don’t think Touch is as strong a song as Debut, to be honest. The verses are a bit too simple and a bit too subdued to make much of an impact on me, though of course the writing is much more solid. This song is also very, very short—at 2:10 it’s only seven seconds longer than Debut—and like Debut, definitely would have benefited from a bridge or a weightier hook. I don’t think Touch is a bad song at all; it’s just not really my taste.

Ella actually has the opposite opinion. As she puts it: “Touch was the song that caught the attention of people who hadn’t watched Dream Academy [the program that started KATSEYE] It’s everything Debut is, just turned up slightly. Catchier chorus, cuter dance, and honestly very cute lyrics that do tell a simple story that’s fun to follow and sing along to. It’s catchy, addicting, and gets stuck in your head for hours or days at a time.” She adds, solemnly: “I have been victim to this.”

[MoA that I am, I couldn’t not mention that there’s also a remix of Touch featuring Yeonjun from TXT. I really liked his verse, and not even just because I’m his fan, and even more so, I loved the last choruses where they sang together. TXT was the first concert Ella and I went to together, so this song feels like a great full-circle moment for both our kpop journeys.]

Going on from Debut, Touch is in a similar category when it comes to sexualization. It’s fairly subtle again—shots up the legs, unnecessary eyes at the camera and hip movements in the choreo—but nothing too, and I hate to say it, unusual. The biggest difference is the clothing. For both choreo parts Daniela is wearing shorts so short I don’t even know if I can call them that, Manon wears something that’s basically a bra, and so on. Again, this isn’t necessarily a crime, but with the benefit of hindsight and the knowledge that HYBE idols very rarely dress themselves, it’s uncomfortable to say the least.

EP #1: SIS (Soft IS Strong)

Even by kpop standards, SIS (Soft Is Strong) is a very short EP. Only five songs long, with not one longer than two and a half minutes, I think a couple of its ideas feel a bit underbaked. All three b-sides, My Way, I’m Pretty, and Tonight I Might, fall into a similar category, providing a more downtempo, intimate portrait of KATSEYE.

Because I’m me, Tonight I Might was inevitably my favorite. I’ve always been weak to a crying-on-the-dancefloor sound, and though this was more laid-back than the genre usually is, I was still here for it. I loved how it blended your typical we’re-going-out-on-the-town! track with a deeper message about living your life in the moment, even if it’s a little delayed. “This song just makes me smile,” Ella says. “It’s about the stuff that you maybe didn’t do when you were younger out of fear or awkwardness, but maybe the day to do all those things has come.” I think Tonight I Might is the kind of song that grows with you, as you get older and learn to care less about others’ opinions of you, and more about your friends and the relationships that make life worth it. It has a special place in my heart.

But, like with the titles, Ella and I have different favorites of the b-sides, so I’m going to pass her the mic to talk about hers: My Way. “My Way is a little slower and more laid back compared to [Debut and Touch], and allows the girls to show off their vocals more than most songs they actually have released so far. My Way [focuses] on doing things your way, even if it goes wrong, or people judge you for it. At the end of the day, you can look back and say that you did things in a way that was true and authentic to yourself; you did things in a way you can be proud of. I really love this song. A lot of songs in KATSEYE’s discography struggle to find the balance between catchy and meaningful [and] I think My Way finds that middle ground really well. My Way [also gives] the girls a break from dancing, and time to ad lib vocally and take liberties with the song.”

Single #3: Gnarly

So. Gnarly. You know it. I know it, unfortunately. I’m going to be blunt: God I hate this song. I’m sorry. I know that isn’t a groundbreaking opinion but allow me a paragraph to complain. What forty year old man pressed “YES” on a Gen Z slang spewing AI? Who created such gems as, and I quote: “Hottie hottie like a bag of takis” “I’m the SHIT” “MAKING BEATS FOR A BORING DUMB BITCH FUCKING GNARLY” and my personal nemesis: “OH mY gOd tHiS sOnG’s SO LIT CoNgrAtuLaTioNs” . Nope. Jail. Jail for songwriters for a thousand years.

“Oh god, I had to listen to Gnarly again to write this,” Ella says. “I’m still not used to all the nonsense in there.” Though she does give Gnarly more credit than I do: “I think the best thing Gnarly does is shock value. The lyrics aren’t sensical, the music video makes no sense, but I really remember it.  It was a good choice for their first single. By releasing Gnarly first, they put out the idea that they were darker and more mature than the pastels and china that they debuted with…To me, it’s the epitome of “no attention is bad attention.” More eyes were on Katseye and their upcoming music. But I will still never unironically stream Gnarly.”

(Cheers to that, girl).

In terms of our sexualization tracking counter: oh boy. Like Ella mentioned, we’re clearly attempting to go for edgy here, and with that comes not only nonsense lyrics but also half as many clothes. From the first dance section, where the girls are all in crop tops and miniskirts so many they basically aren’t skirts (and we’re smacking Megan’s ass for god knows what reason), it just keeps going. And that’s without taking into account how *trying to figure out how to say this* how much ass shaking there is in the choreo, okay? Let’s not forget that we’re in 2025; Yoonchae was still sixteen at this point, and the oldest member, Manon, was only twenty-two. Somehow, I wasn’t expecting this; maybe I was too distracted by the song the first time to really notice, but either way it’s…uncomfortable, to say the least.

Single #4: Gabriela

“We have arrived at my favorite KATSEYE song!!” Ella announced when we started the Gabriella section. I’ll let her take the mic for this one.

Ella: “[So,] Gabriella surrounds the idea of a temptress, much like Jolene by Dolly Parton! Something I really like [about it] is that the song doesn’t tear the “Gabriella” down; [it] highlights how beautiful and smart she is. She’s competition, yes, but not something to hate and destroy. The music video also includes the element of competition by having the girls fight for the power of running the company named Gabriella Enterprises. (Anna note: in glorious telenovela style).”

“For me,” Ella says, “Gabriella is a hit in all categories. It has a great, cohesive concept with a matching music video, interesting, sensical lyrics, a good addictive chorus and matching dance, and a chance for the members to show off their vocals with various adlibs. Gabriella also allows Dani to show her culture by giving her the bridge in Spanish, which she sings gorgeously.  [To me] Gabriella is the perfect execution of the concept “Beautiful Chaos.” The visuals are great…the music video absolutely has glamour and allure, [and] the chaos comes through in the scenes of the girls literally cat fighting. Can you tell I like Gabriella. And em dashes.”

[Back to Anna] I can in fact tell that she likes Gabriella. And em dashes! In fact, I know this because her name in my phone has been Ella-la-la-la for a solid year. So. Is Gabriela’s Dolly Parton’s Jolene in a different font? A touch. (Touch, touch, touch, touch—-sorry, sorry, I’ll stop). While I’m not quite as effusive in my praise for it as Ella, I do agree that it’s their strongest single, concept wise, lyrically, and definitely in terms of music video. And that Dani’s bridge is great. Also, can I just say, I used to be in a kpop dance group and that hand choreo is difficult, alright? KATSEYE must have no bones in their wrists.

Checking up on the sexualization, music video wise, I honestly think that the Gabriela MV isn’t too bad on this front. It feels a lot more like a Sabrina Carpenter outing for me, more focused on humor and over the top drama than attempting to be “sexy”. There are still parts that made me uncomfortable, sure, mostly due to clothing on Dani and Lara, but they were in the minority. The MV is honestly hilarious and it’s just so ridiculous that I have no idea how the girls didn’t burst into laughter.

Single #5: Gameboy

I admit it, alright. When I pressed play on the Gameboy music video and saw that 4/5 members were wearing basically underwear, I almost clicked off. But I digress. Besides that, I think that Gameboy is one of KATSEYE’s strongest songs. I love interesting rhyme schemes—here the rhyme is the second to last word and not the last in the sentence, i.e. “gameboy, play boy,” etc etc.—which I’m here for. I think the prechorus is better than the main chorus, and they don’t quite gel, but both are good on their own. And damn did “LOVING YOUS A GAME BOY” get stuck in my head.

“Gameboy is another one of my favorites,” Ella says. “[It’s got] an incredibly cute and incredibly addictive chorus and dance. It’s a simple song [about] knowing you’re not the problem—please don’t let a boy tell you that you love drama and attention. You don’t need that energy in your life. Also, I would love to shout out the choreo—-there are a bunch of small little games they play against each other during the song that are easy to miss, but such cute details! [It also] gives Manon a bit of a spotlight in terms of vocals and dance, which I think works so so well for this. Honestly, besides the fact that the girls have a lot less fabric covering them, I really think Gameboy is a song that could’ve gone in SIS. Either way though, I am a fan of it. If nothing else, it at least gave us the iconic “gay boy” TikTok from Megan, so, worth it either way.”

EP #2: Beautiful Chaos

On to the second EP, Beautiful Chaos, and our last section for this half of the review. We’ll start with Ella’s favorite, M.I.A. As she puts it: “M.I.A is a song about how you shouldn’t put up with anything you don’t have to. Car is ready, girls are waiting, and the world is open and exciting. Drop everything and go adventure, girl! It’s a fun song the girls clearly enjoy and love to play with, especially vocally! This is the kind of “sexy” and “edgy” concept that I think is done well. It’s not forced or uncomfortable; there’s no specific choreo or strange lyrics the girls have to follow. I would love more songs like M.I.A.” I totally agree with her; M.I.A.’s EDM trap beat and punchy performance is a prime example of what I think Beautiful Chaos could be if it wasn’t so stuck on mining these songs for shock value, and I wish they went more in this direction.

I don’t need to tell anyone who’s ever been a fan of a girl group—or even any female artist—how often women are pitted against each other. And how often they put themselves against each other too. Maybe that’s why I love the song Mean Girls so much. The EP closer, Mean Girls is a moving ballad-pop song dedicated to every kind of girl there is: “God bless the sweet girls, god bless the queen girls, god bless the free girls, and yes, god bless even the mean girls.” It’s about choosing kindness, and choosing compassion, even in the face of the opposite. As Ella describes it: “Mean girls are mean for a reason. Insecurity is a mess that targets everyone. Wish the best for everyone, send them love, and hope they figure it out.” This informal music video of KATSEYE just having fun together, practicing, and enjoying life is easily my absolute favorite of their “lyric films”. And of course, as the song closes out: “God bless the T girls and all the in between girls”. Amen.

We’re going to end there for today. Remember, anyone out there reading: this is just my (and Ella’s!) opinion. Be kind to each other, be kind to your favorite groups, and most importantly, god bless the mean girls.

Next time, we’re onto Part 2. Tschüss!