Coachella kicks off today, and Katseye has a prime-time slot. The girl group is set to perform at 8 p.m. on Friday night just before headliner, Sabrina Carpenter. Earlier this week, they released a new single they’ll perform live for the first time at the festival. This should be a huge moment for Katseye and their fans, but one question is hanging over the whole affair: Will Manon be there?
Back in February, Katseye’s label, HYBE x Geffen, announced Manon Bannerman, the group’s oldest member, would be taking a “temporary hiatus” from their schedule. In her own statement, the singer said, “Sometimes things unfold in ways we don’t fully control, but I’m trusting the bigger picture.” This week, she released another statement, saying she’d been having “positive conversations” with the label.
Based on everything coming out of Coachella, those positive conversations do not seem to be leading her back to the group. On Thursday, HYBE apparently told the Korea Herald that Manon would not be performing at Coachella and that she “remains on hiatus.” If that wasn’t enough of a confirmation, a video from a fan who witnessed the group’s sound check showed only five women onstage instead of six.
Manon was also absent from the group’s video for their new single, “PINKY UP,” which premiered on Thursday. This was perhaps expected, considering her ongoing hiatus, but that doesn’t mean fans are happy about it. Under every post promoting the video on Instagram, the comments are flooded with messages about Manon. “My pinky is down until I see Manon back in the group,” one representative comment reads. “NO MANON = NO KATSEYE,” reads another. Well, maybe Katseye could bring out Carpenter a little early to even out the choreo.
