On February 20th, 2026, Manon Bannerman of Katseye announced she would go on a hiatus to focus on her health and well being. However, many fans online are speculating on the real cause of her hiatus and they also speculate that she’s gotten kicked out of the global girl group.
The speculation as to why she was put on sudden hiatus has been heavily discussed online, with some pointing towards her health and well being, and with some pointing towards racism towards Black girls within the music industry. Katseye is under Hybe x Geffen, two companies collaborating together to make this global girl group happen. Bannerman was also seen liking an Instagram post condemning the racism Black girls in the industry go through, which caused even further speculation that she wasn’t on a hiatus, but that the label (HYBE) was soft launching kicking her out.
Both companies are Korean-based, with branches outside of Korea. Many K-pop groups and idols have been criticized heavily for racist remarks and/or racist actions, such as cultural appropriation and use of racial slurs. Many K-pop idols have come out and spoken up about mistreatment they faced while training, and there have been multiple lawsuits and controversies regarding this. The most recent major lawsuit was with girl group NewJeans against Hybe, and as a result, Danielle Marsh of NewJeans was kicked out of the group and Hybe filed a lawsuit against her for 30 million USD.
The girl group also had an entire documentary about them, Dream Academy. This documentary showcased talented dancers and singers from around the world, as they all trained hard and competed against each other for a spot in Katseye. Fans noted the documentary painted Manon as lazy, and that the other contestants were more meaner/frustrated towards her.
Katseye recently performed at Coachella, but Manon was not present. There was a lot of speculation that Manon would be performing due to legal reasons, so people were really hoping for her. Junior Diya Syangbo said “She’s everywhere and doing amazing; she was at Coachella. I don’t understand why she’s on a hiatus. She seems good. I don’t think she needs a hiatus; I think she gets mistreated by HYBE.”
Furthermore, Katseye teased a new song, “Pinky Up.” Throughout the entire promotion and music video, Manon was not present. This caused more speculation that Manon got removed from Katseye. An anonymous senior says “The group is going to flop without Manon.”
As of right now, there is no confirmed information about the return of Manon on Katseye.
