Katseye's Newest Releases & Controversies

By Natalia Day

Mixed reviews swirl around popular girl group KATSEYE’s new song, “Pinky Up,” which was released on April 9, 2026, the day before the highly anticipated music and arts festival, Coachella. Within the first day of its release, the “Pinky Up” music video, which was posted to YouTube, received around 7.2 million views, more than any of their previous releases. 

Another first for KATSEYE, to the disappointment of their fans, was the absence of the group’s visual, Manon Bannerman, in the “Pinky Up” music video. KATSEYE’s company, HYBE, announced on Feb. 20, 2026 that Bannerman would be going on a temporary hiatus for her physical and mental well-being, though some fans pointed out inconsistencies between HYBE’s statement and some of Bannerman’s social media posts regarding her leave. 

There have been many instances that made KATSEYE fans raise an eyebrow at the promotion around Bannerman. The six members were featured in a Glossier billboard and posted a picture that they took of themselves posing in front of it. Bannerman was not only excluded from the photo, but the picture was taken in a way that would cover her part of the billboard. It’s also hard to miss the limited screentime she has in music videos, specifically their music video for Debut, in which she was behind the group and covered for the majority of the video. 

One of KATSEYE’s first major collaborations was with Monster High. Each member got their own custom doll and was given a chance to talk about them during an interview. Bannerman however, was the only one who wasn’t given a chance to talk about her doll and it was blatantly obvious that the interviewers skipped over her. It was later discovered that HYBE never sent in Bannerman’s pictures for the promotion of the Monster High dolls. 

Bannerman released a statement a month into her hiatus, saying, “Sometimes things unfold in ways we don’t fully control but I’m trusting the bigger picture.” HYBE’s hiatus announcement didn’t fully align with her statement, saying, “Manon will be taking a temporary hiatus…to focus on her health and wellbeing. We fully support this decision.” Given HYBE’s repeated poor treatment of Bannerman, it can be speculated that her hiatus was forced upon her as opposed to it being her decision. She said that she wasn’t fully in control of the situation, which refutes HYBE’s statement that it was her decision. Fans will continue to anticipate more updates by both HYBE and Bannerman and are hopeful that she will make her return soon.

Manon’s hiatus is not the only one of KATSEYE’s recent controversies, as their new song sparked both positive and negative responses. However, fans didn’t just complain about the song, but about the group’s recent concept ever since the release of their previous song, “Internet Girl.” Fans seem to miss their more contemporary singles, such as “Gabriela” and “Touch,” and argue that with “Internet Girl” and “Pinky Up,” they were trying to repeat the success that they found with “Gnarly.” All three songs take up a hyperpop concept with loud and erratic choreography. While many listeners are wishing for another “Gabriela” equivalent, with the success of “Pinky Up,” it’s hard to deny that the “Gnarly” concept suits them, and it seems likely that their success is far from over.