Katseye | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Los Angeles, California |
Years active | 2024 | –present
Labels | |
Members |
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Website | katseye.world |
Katseye (pronounced "cat's eye"; stylized in all caps) is agirl group based in Los Angeles, California, composed of six members: Sophia, Manon, Daniela, Lara, Megan, and Yoonchae. Described as a "global girl group", the sextet draws on talent from four countries: the United States, the Philippines, South Korea, and Switzerland. The group was formed through the 2023 reality show Dream Academy , a collaboration between the South Korean Hybe Corporation and Geffen Records (US).
Katseye debuted in June 2024 with the single "Debut". It was followed by the single "Touch", which became their commercial breakthrough and preceded their first extended play (EP) SIS (Soft Is Strong) (2024).
In an interview with InStyle , the group leader, Sophia, revealed that the group's name was inspired by the gemstone chrysoberyl, popularly known as cat's eye. She further explained that the different colors reflected by the gemstone at various angles represent the members' personalities, talents, and varied backgrounds. [1]
The group's name was originally intended to be "Catseye," but during an interview with LA radio 102.7 KIIS FM , Daniela revealed that Lara suggested changing the spelling to "Katseye;" the group eventually agreed, saying that the new spelling "looked cooler." [2]
In November 2021, Hybe and Geffen Records opened their applications for a girl group with "contestants from around the world" as part of the joint venture Hybe x Geffen Records. [3] With auditions held across South Korea, the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom in 2022, the partnership aimed to create a group that will "transcend national, cultural, and artistic boundaries". [4] [5] In an interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily , Hybe founder Bang Si-hyuk expressed his intentions to promote the resultant group to the American market. [6]
From over 120,000 applicants, twenty contestants were selected to compete in the reality show Dream Academy, which determined the six-member lineup of the girl group through a series of "missions". [7] Prior to the series premiere, the contestants were trained for a year in Los Angeles, California, through methods prevalent in the Korean idol trainee system. [8] Premiering on August 19, 2023, the competition concluded on November 18, with Sophia Laforteza, Lara Rajagopalan, Yoonchae Jeong, Megan Skiendiel, Daniela Avanzini, and Manon Bannerman being selected to form the girl group Katseye. [9]
Katseye's formation and their preparations for their debut EP were serialized in the documentary Pop Star Academy: Katseye, which premiered on August 21, 2024. [10] [11] [12] Distributed by Netflix, the documentary was directed by Nadia Hallgren. [13] [14] The release of the group's first extended play was set for August 2024, [15] [16] following the release of two singles in June and July. [17] [18] For the EP, Katseye collaborated with several songwriters and producers, including Ryan Tedder and Omer Fedi. [19] [20]
The first of the two singles for the EP, "Debut", was released on June 28, with a music video filmed in Medellín, Colombia, directed by Gregory Ohrel. [21] [22] The single is a pop track that explores themes of confidence and sisterhood in reference to the members' bond as a group. [19] It was met with a lukewarm response commercially, with the music video for the single receiving 2.33 million views in three days, underperforming the viewership of music releases of Korean acts in a similar timeframe. [23] The second single, "Touch", was released on July 26. [24] The melodic drum and bass R&B track discusses the "complexity of love" and deviates from the sound of "Debut", emphasizing the members' vocals. [25] [26] [27] The single attained commercial success globally after a dance challenge created by the group went viral on the video-sharing platform TikTok in September 2024. [28] [29] [30]
The full EP, titled SIS (Soft Is Strong) , was released on August 16. [31] [32] With five tracks, the EP debuted at number 119 on the Billboard 200 as Katseye landed atop the Emerging Artists chart. [33] In support of the EP, the group embarked on an Asian tour, which began in Seoul, South Korea, on September 12. [34] [35] Megan would refrain from touring from September 21, owing to her back injury. [36]
Katseye has cited the Pussycat Dolls, Spice Girls, and Le Sserafim as musical influences. [37] In an interview with the British magazine i-D , member Daniela described Katseye as the first American girl group "to make American pop music but trained to do the crazy choreography of K-pop". Manon also noted the diversity of the group's line-up, with Lara, Sophia, Daniela, and herself as the first Indian, Filipina, Latina, and Black artists respectively to be signed under Hybe. [38]
Prior to the group's debut, Teen Vogue named Katseye as one of twelve "Girl Groups to Watch in 2024". [39]
On October 29, 2024, Katseye shared content from a photoshoot featuring themselves in costume as fairy characters of the animated television Winx Club for the year's Halloween, earning a spot on Teen Vogue's list of "The Best Halloween Celebrity Costumes of 2024." [40] The costumes garnered attention across social media platforms; earning over 8.4 million likes across the group's Instagram posts [41] and over 16.8 million likes across the group's TikTok posts of the Halloween costumes as of November 2024. [42]
Adapted from Katseye's official website. [43]
Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BEL (FL) [45] | BEL (WA) [45] | CRO [46] | FRA [47] | KOR [48] | SCO [49] | UK [50] | US [51] | |||
SIS (Soft Is Strong) | 91 | 103 | 39 | 78 | 27 | 58 | 45 | 119 |
Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
CAN [54] | KOR [55] | MLY [56] | NZ Hot [57] | PHL [58] | SGP [59] | US Bub. [60] | WW [61] | |||
"Debut" | 2024 | — | — [A] | — | — | — | — | — | — | SIS (Soft Is Strong) |
"Touch" | 79 | 70 | 9 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 22 | 58 | ||
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region. |
Title | Year | Director(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
"Debut" | 2024 | Gregory Ohrel | [21] |
"Touch" | Cody Critcheloe | [63] |
Title | Year | Director(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
" 'My Way' Lyric Film" | 2024 | Lumpens | [64] |
" 'I'm Pretty' Lyric Film" | Rahul Batt | [65] | |
" 'Tonight I Might' Lyric Film" | [66] |
Year | Title | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
2023 | Dream Academy | Survival show determining Katseye's members | [6] |
2024 | Pop Star Academy: Katseye | Documentary on the group's debut preparation | [67] |
Publisher | Year | Listicle | Placement | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Teen Vogue | 2024 | 12 Girl Groups to Watch in 2024 | Placed | [39] |
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