KATSEYE Says Reason for Manon’s Hiatus Wasn’t About Race: ‘That Goes Against Everything That We Stand For’
Some fans had speculated that Manon faced mistreatment with respect to her being the only Black member of the group.
As questions about Manon’s hiatus from KATSEYE continue to proliferate, the active members of the group have once again addressed the reason for their bandmate’s break — this time shutting down speculation that it had something to do with race.
Speaking to Vanity Fair in a story published Tuesday (June 30), Sophia, Lara, Daniela, Yoonchae and Megan shared that they’ve been in contact with Manon “here and there” in the months since HYBE announced in February that she’d be stepping back to “focus on her health and well-being.”
“The safest space that we had was within the six of us,” Lara told the publication of missing her bandmate, subtly dismissing gossip that the other girls might not have wanted Manon in their lineup anymore. “People just have no idea what goes on. They just don’t. It’s nothing but love between us.”
As for another prominent rumor regarding Manon’s hiatus? “We can definitely say that in our situation, in no way was it about race,” Sofia said. “That goes against everything that we stand for.”
The girls also expressed feeling happy that their bandmate has had the freedom to enjoy herself away from the rigor of the group. Of Manon appearing at this year’s Coachella as an attendee rather than performing with KATSEYE on the festival stage, Sophia said, “I’m really happy that she’s able to enjoy things like that.”
Sophia, Lara, Daniela, Yoonchae, Megan and Manon were first put together as KATSEYE on HYBE’s “Dream Academy” series, which Netflix captured in its Pop Star Academy documentary. After scoring a series of Billboard Hot 100 entries — such as top 40 hits “Gnarly” and “Gabriela” — the sextet abruptly became a quintet when KATSEYE’s label announced, “After open and thoughtful conversations together, we are sharing that Manon will be taking a temporary hiatus from group activities to focus on her health and well-being … we look forward to being together again when the time is right.”
After Manon reportedly liked a post on social media indicating that she’d faced mistreatment by the music industry as a Black woman, EYEKONs wondered if it pointed back to the “real” reason for her exit. But prior to the VF article, KATSEYE had already warned against making such assumptions.
“Because we did announce that it is about her well-being, it’s not our place or anybody else’s place to rush her,” Sophia told Allure earlier in June. “We want to give her all the time that she needs, all the space that she needs, and so we don’t want to make any assumptions, set anything in stone … She really deserves that, and the door is always open.”
