KATSEYE fans finally have a date. Sophia Laforteza will rejoin the group in the first week of January 2027, HYBE x Geffen announced on Thursday (Oct. 8), two months after she stepped back to focus on her health. The rest of the picture is murkier. Sophia will sit out the North American leg of the WILDWORLD Tour, which opens Tuesday (Oct. 13) in Miami, and there's still no word on Manon Bannerman, who has been on hiatus since February.
The timing stings, because this has been KATSEYE's biggest year. WILD, their third EP, opened at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in August with 170,000 units, the biggest first week for a female group in 18 years, per Billboard. “Hootie Frutti” peaked at No. 31 on the Hot 100, their sixth top-40 hit in a row. Since August, nearly all of that promotion has fallen to four members: Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel and Yoonchae Jeung.
What did the label say?
HYBE x Geffen posted the update to Weverse at 11 a.m. ET, and KATSEYE shared the same notice on their own accounts.
KATSEYE@katseyeworldX[Notice] Sophia’s Upcoming Schedule Notice
Oct 8, 2026 · View on X ↗“We are happy to share that Sophia will resume group activities with KATSEYE beginning the first week of January 2027,” the statement reads, as transcribed by The FADER. It adds that she “will not be participating in THE WILDWORLD TOUR in North America, or promotional activities for the remainder of this year.”
What did Sophia say?
Sophia posted her own message to her Instagram Story, though she didn't give a date herself. She said the time away had been hard, and useful. “It hasn’t been easy, but I have been putting in the work by receiving the care I need, learning the tools to better support myself, and doing everything I can to nurture my well-being,” she wrote, via Rolling Stone.
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She plans to keep training during the break. “I can’t wait to share the stage with my sisters again and look out to all of you!” she added, before asking fans to “continue to support and cheer on my girls!!!”
Her break began in early August, about a week before WILD came out. “Making this decision wasn’t easy, but I’m learning that health has to come first,” she said at the time.
What about Manon?
Officially, nothing has changed since Feb. 20, when HYBE x Geffen said Manon would take “a temporary hiatus from group activities to focus on her health and wellbeing.” That statement said the group would keep to its schedule and look forward to being “together again when the time is right.” Billboard noted on Thursday that no update has been given on her future with the group.
Fans have been reading the signs for months. Manon removed KATSEYE from her Instagram bio in April, and the group played Coachella without her, Complex notes. During Paris Fashion Week, a fan filmed Daniela being asked about her. “I miss her so much! And I wish her the best,” Daniela said. Asked why Manon is “not in KATSEYE anymore,” she answered, “I’m not sure.” That was a quick exchange with a fan, not a statement, and there has been no official word since.
Who's on the tour?
The quartet. KATSEYE played the nine-date European leg as four, from Dublin on Sept. 1 to Copenhagen on Sept. 17, then made their Saturday Night Live debut on the Sept. 26 season premiere, performing “Animal” and “Hootie Frutti” on a smoothie-bar set. Rolling Stone reports that neither Sophia nor Manon will appear on the North American dates. Watch the SNL performance below.
They've kept the WILD rollout moving, too. On Oct. 2 the group released a baile funk remix of “Hootie Frutti” by the Brazilian producer Pedro Sampaio, featuring Mc Gw and DJ Clementaum.
What's next?
Oct. 13: The North American leg opens at Miami's Kaseya Center. It runs through Atlanta, New York, Montreal and Los Angeles, among others, and ends with two nights at Mexico City's Palacio de los Deportes on Nov. 27 and 28.
Oct. 16: KATSEYE: WILD HEARTS, Nadia Hallgren's film about the group and its fans, starts streaming on Disney+ and Hulu in the U.S. and on Disney+ internationally.
Oct. 18: KATSEYE perform at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in Los Angeles, alongside Megan Thee Stallion, Tate McRae and Megan Moroney.
First week of January 2027: Sophia is back, and KATSEYE are five again. Whether they become six is the one question the label still hasn't answered.
- Performing now
- Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, Yoonchae Jeung
- Sophia Laforteza
- On hiatus since early August 2026; returns first week of January 2027
- Manon Bannerman
- On hiatus since Feb. 20, 2026; no update
- North American tour
- Oct. 13 (Miami) to Nov. 28 (Mexico City)
- Current EP
- WILD (August 2026), No. 1 on the Billboard 200
