The Katseye group must once again deal with the absence of one of its members. Sophia Laforteza, leader of the group, announces that she is taking a break for her mental health. A decision which revives questions around the group.
Another hard blow for Katseye. On August 7, Sophia Laforteza announced her temporary withdrawal from the group. At 23, the Filipino singer wants to prioritize her mental health.
“It really breaks my heart to have to miss so much.” she wrote on social networks. “I learned that health must come first”she adds. She assures her fans that she wants “heal completely and come back stronger”.
The labels Hybe and Geffen Records themselves made the announcement on their site. After consulting health professionals, Sophia must “take the time to fully rest and continue your care”. His condition is due to be re-evaluated in September. For the moment, no return date in Katseye has been announced.
After Sophia, the questions multiply
This announcement resonates with that of Manon Bannerman. In February, Switzerland also withdrew from the group for reasons of “health and well-being”. “Sometimes things work out in ways we don’t understand, but I choose to trust the bigger picture.”she declared at that moment.
Two absences in a few months. Enough to fuel theories on social networks. Katseye fans talk about the pressure, the pace of work and even a difficult environment.
If to date, nothing confirms these theories, the members of Katseye report receiving sexist comments and death threats. “People see us as women to be classified”explains Lara Raj in an interview given to the BBC last April. “They rate us based on our beauty, our singing and dancing skills.” She confided to the British media: “When 1,000 people send us death threats, it’s disturbing.”
Towards the end of Katseye?
Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel and Yoonchae Jeong are the four remaining members of the international k-pop group born from the show The Debut: Dream Academybroadcast on Netflix in 2024. With Manon and Sophia, the six young women are selected from more than 120,000 candidates.
Since then, the international k-pop group has established itself with titles like Gnarly, Gabriella and, more recently, Animal. This sound is the best Spotify debut of their career and ranks in the top 10 worldwide.
The success is such that all the dates of their upcoming tour are sold out. Sophia’s departure comes one month before Katseye’s visit to the Accor Arena in Paris, on September 9.
For now, Katseye continues her activities with the release of her new EP, Wild, on September 14. Sophia, above all, asks her fans to “show kindness” towards the group. His message on Instagram perhaps sums up the main challenge of the coming months: to continue moving forward, without forgetting those who are missing.
