Worldwide stardom, brand deals with big-name companies and a Grammy nomination – and performance – under their belt; at the start of 2026, it seemed like American girl group Katseye had nowhere to go but up.

Debuting only two years ago, the six-member girl group had already secured a coveted opportunity last year to perform at Coachella 2026, without even having an album out. The stars of Katseye looked unstoppable, until it all came to a screeching halt when their label, HYBE and Geffen Records (HxG), announced in February that Manon Bannerman would be taking a “temporary hiatus” to focus on her health.

The announcement was met with concern and support from Katseye’s fans (known as Eyekons). Manon then released a statement reassuring fans she was healthy and taking care of herself, contradicting HxG’s previous statement about her abrupt departure.

This led fans to ask questions about the label’s treatment of the other band members. Megan Skiendiel went on a hiatus in 2024 during their Asia promotional tour for their EP Soft is Strong in order to heal from a back injury. During her absence, the other members made an effort to include and reference her publicly. This time, however, they have been silent about the whole ordeal, with mentions of Manon being little to none.

With Manon being sighted liking a social media post calling out the alleged racism faced by Black members in girl groups, fans have begun to speculate that the real reason may be more than health issues, but alleged internal mistreatment.

Despite being portrayed as a genuine and unfiltered girl group, their origins reflect quite the opposite. Formed through a 2023 reality TV show called The Debut: Dream Academy, the group was manufactured through intense competition, where 20 Katseye hopefuls had to fight for the chance to be a part of the group.

The show pitted the girls against each other, rewarding over-exertion and hyper-competitiveness while fostering an environment of constant anxiety and stress. Alarmingly, such environments have been proven to have negative effects like physiological stress, both in immediate responses and long-term disorders.

Even now, with the sisterhood formed and the battle over, the girls are still subject to constant pressure to perform amid minor injuries and illnesses, leading to worsening conditions of severe ailments. For example, Megan’s back injury is one incident of how overwork has affected the girls and how the pressure from the previously mentioned show persists until now.

 

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The members have also frequently mentioned having to work with little sleep and no time off, leaving fans concerned by their jam-packed schedule.

Allen Noronia, an 18-year-old Eyekon, shared with Harbingers’ his worries about how overworked the members are becoming. “It is somehow inhumane what these girls go through, especially their youngest member [Yoonchae] being a minor for almost half their career so far,” he said.

“I’ve watched videos where they have shown signs of exhaustion. It’s also concerning how most of the time, one of the group is missing from events due to injury or illness,” he added.

Where else have we seen this?

Countless other girl groups have suffered the same fate as Katseye, most notably the British girl group the Spice Girls, possibly the most merchandised group in history.

In 1997, a year after their swift rise to stardom, the girls went on a prolific marketing spree, advertising products from Pepsi to Polaroids. As managers, 19 Entertainment scrambled to ride the high of their success. Spice Girls branding could be seen everywhere, leading to unprecedented “Spicemania”.

Yet overwork caused adverse effects on their life and health, as detailed by Mel C (“Sporty Spice”) and Geri Halliwell (“Ginger Spice”), as well as heavy backlash from the public and media, leading to them firing their manager Simon Fuller, who had pushed for this heavy onslaught of advertising.

All this overexposure and exploitation were mirrored in the situation with Katseye and Manon. At the end of the day, music is a business, and entertainment agencies have proven time and time again that this is the case. Their goal isn’t to create lasting artists and thoughtful music but rather to manufacture commodities in the name of short-term, booming profit using talented and ambitious women.

“It is certainly more than possible to be a fan and still recognise the terrible system of the entertainment industry. At the end of the day, it’s the idols and their supporters vs the exploitative industry,” said Francis.

This exploitation of talent not only has a harmful effect on fans, especially young girls, but further promotes the capitalist culture of fast-paced, excessive consumption. The blind support of the media and products created through this system continues to perpetuate it, which is why being aware of how these systems work against artists is essential to becoming an ethical fan.