KATSEYE Is Only Getting Started

KATSEYE is aiming for world domination, and they’re not shy about it. “We want to headline a festival like Coachella,” Manon tells Bustle. Joined by her bandmates in their rehearsal studio, she lists off goals in the style of Lady Gaga’s “no sleep, bus, club” meme — “Headline, more fire music, songwriting, producing!” — as Sophia yells “Grammy!” in the background.

The last few months prove they’re on the right path. KATSEYE was formed in 2023 on YouTube’s reality competition series Dream Academy, where members Daniela, Lara, Manon, Megan, Sophia, and Yoonchae (who all go by mononyms) beat out 14 other aspiring musicians to launch a global girl group that combined K-pop-style training with international flair and multilingual bangers. They released their debut EP, SIS (Soft Is Strong), in August 2024 to positive reviews, but their stars blasted off once things got “Gnarly.”

The first single from this year’s Beautiful Chaos EP, “Gnarly” is a visceral, almost abrasive ode to the linguistic wonders of slang, and its nonsensical genius had the internet divided — not that the group cares anyway. “People don’t need to love everything,” Manon, a native of Switzerland, says over Zoom. “It’s OK to not be obsessed with something. It’s niche. We always want to keep evolving and experimenting and trying out new sounds.”

Now, follow-up single “Gabriela” — a Latin-tinged callback to Dolly Parton’s “Jolene,” complete with Daniela singing in her native Spanish — is making its way up the charts, spurred by their flamenco-inspired dance break that’s hypnotized the internet. “It felt like I was at home because I haven’t done that kind of dancing in a couple of years,” says Daniela, who grew up in Atlanta and is Venezuelan-Cuban. “That’s what I’m most comfortable with. It was an honor to show that heritage and share it with the fans.”

And then, of course, there’s that Gap commercial, in which the ladies pull off elaborate choreography to Kelis’ 2003 hit “Milkshake,” showcasing their dancing skills across millions of TV and YouTube ad breaks. It seems just about everything the group does goes viral — and after pulling an eye-popping crowd at Chicago’s Lollapalooza this year, they’re ready to translate the buzz into real-life connection on their first North American headlining tour this fall.

“Growing up, we all idolized artists that really valued showmanship: Britney, Beyoncé, Gaga, girl groups like TLC and Pussycat Dolls,” says Lara, who has Indian-American heritage. “They really valued the grandeur of a show, and that’s something that we’ve always wanted to do. Lolla was just a little taste, but we’re so excited to do so much more with crazy sets and really cool outfit changes, keeping that magic of performance alive. We want people to come to our show and be just blown away.”

On what makes something “Gnarly”:

Megan: Anyone being authentically themselves. Whatever they feel is right or they want to do — just fully go for it 100% and don’t have any doubt in yourself.

Yoonchae: For me, being gnarly means doing something bold and fearless, even if it feels a little outside of your comfort zone. It’s about confidence, taking risks, and having fun while doing it.

Sophia: Addison Rae is a little gnarly. Gnarly is very raw. You’re just letting loose and [being] expressive. It’s messy yet beautiful at the same time.

Lara: “Gnarly” is just cool. If you’re cool, you understand it’s cool. And we all just got it. It’s just so different and so original. And I think we’ve always craved something that has an essence like that.

On their massive Lollapalooza crowd:

Megan: That was such a milestone for all of us. Coming off stage, we were just so, so proud of ourselves on how far we’ve come. We just weren’t expecting that at all, and it was super, super emotional. Being able to do it with five of my best friends — it was awesome.

Manon: The moment we saw the crowd, we just immediately locked in. We were just like, “We can do those dances asleep.” So it was just about letting go and enjoying it and giving them a great show. [The crowd] really did their part with giving us the energy that we needed. It was definitely a top-three life experience.

On dealing with “Mean Girls”:

Sophia: We’re just so unserious honestly. We have a KATSEYE group chat, and there’s not an hour of the day when it’s not active. We’ll always send things [people say about us] and just laugh about it. And if one of us ends up falling into that hole, we dig each other out right away. Realistically, these people couldn’t even say it [to our faces]! For all we know, they’re 15 years younger than all of us, so whatever.

Manon: We all have moments. We’re all young women. But at the end of the day, I don’t think these people could do what we do. I sleep good at night knowing that.

Lara: Something we’ve been dealing with recently, though, is people digging into our personal lives. People are contacting my family. I love to address and clock things a little bit. We have little platforms where we can tell people to shut the f*ck up. Sometimes I do — in a respectful, casual way. Clocking something and then moving on is great.

On their first headlining tour:

Sophia: There’s a difference between doing this tour and going to these music festivals and award shows where people don’t exactly know us. We’re going to be seeing a lot of [our fans] the Eyekons that truly know us and connect with them on such a different level.

Manon: When I talk to some of my friends in the industry about touring, the number one thing they said was to appreciate the small venues, the intimacy and being able to see all of their faces, even in the back, because it’s not always going to stay like that. So we really want to make sure we take in every single moment.

Lara: I’m excited to really become a seasoned performer, you know what I mean? With Lolla, we practiced so much, but when you get on stage, that adrenaline takes over. We were so nervous, cursing every time we talked. Just little things like, “OK, we need more experience and more practice doing this.”

On their viral Gap campaign:

Daniela: We have been loving Gap since our childhood, so getting to work with them was literally a dream come true. The choreographer, Robbie Blue, is actually so insane. His choreo, it’s magical. I knew some of the dancers too, so getting to see them again was a lot of fun. And then seeing people online doing the dance as well? I just can’t believe we were able to have such a big influence on it.

Yoonchae: They made everything so comfortable on set, and the atmosphere felt almost like family, which I really loved. When I saw the finished video for the first time, it looked so cool that I immediately thought, “This is going to do really well.”

Manon: It’s only the beginning. We have so much more planned. Gap has always been so iconic with their commercials, so we felt really honored to be a part of it and create the magic together.

On their formative KATSEYE memories:

Yoonchae: The finale of Dream Academy. I think that was my favorite feeling ever because I was begging for that and waiting for that. When [the host] called my name, I was going crazy.

Sophia: My favorite memory is when we visited my home, the Philippines, for the first time. I told the girls that I’m so excited for them to feel the warmth of the Filipino. I knew in my heart that my people would show love to every single member. Everybody was just screaming for everyone. It just showed me how important this project really is.

Lara: There was this mom who was walking with her daughter in the mall and saw the Gap ad. She made a post about how I was wearing my bindi and nose ring, and was like, “It’s so crazy to see traditional Indian things in a major American ad.” I never saw that growing up and really wanted to, so I always told myself: “I need to be that person.” I finally feel like that’s happening.

Check out the rest of Bustle’s Entertainers Issue here, featuring interviews with Brittany Broski, Chloe Fineman, Domhnall Gleeson, Jenny Han, Janelle James, Kesha, Jinkx Monsoon, and Nicole Scherzinger.

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.