KATSEYE's Sofia Laforteza Says Manon Bannerman's Departure Was 'in No Way' About Race Following Online Chatter

Ilana KaplanTue, June 30, 2026 at 3:42 PM UTC

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KATSEYE in June 2026; Manon Bannerman in June 2026 in CorsicaCredit: Micaiah Carter / Vanity Fair; Pascal POCHARD-CASABIANCA / AFP via Getty -

KATSEYE's Sofia Laforteza denies Manon Bannerman's departure from band was about race following online chatter

In a Vanity Fair interview published on Tuesday, June 30, KATSEYE also revealed they keep in touch with Bannerman "here and there.”

Bannerman announced she was going on a "temporary hiatus" from the girl group in February

KATSEYE addressed Manon Bannerman's departure from the band.

In a Vanity Fair interview published on Tuesday, June 30, Sofia Laforteza denied that race was a factor in Bannerman's exit from the group following online chatter.

"We can definitely say that in our situation, in no way was it about race,” Laforteza, 23, told the publication. “That goes against everything that we stand for.”

KATSEYE in June 2026Credit: Micaiah Carter / Vanity Fair

The girl group, which currently features Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, Laforteza and Yoonchae — then addressed whether they keep in touch with Bannerman, 24, to which they replied “here and there.”

PEOPLE has reached out to Bannerman for comment.

Per Vanity Fair, Bannerman will not be on KATSEYE's forthcoming EP and is not yet supposed to join them on their forthcoming world tour.

“The safest space that we had was within the six of us,” Raj, 20, told the outlet. “People just have no idea what goes on. They just don't. It's nothing but love between us.”

In February, Bannerman announced that she'd be taking a “temporary hiatus” from KATSEYE to “focus on her health and wellbeing.”

Allegedly, she liked an Instagram video about being a Black woman in girl groups that month, per Popfaction.

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Two months later, Bannerman shared a message, reportedly posted to the fan platform Weverse, thanking fans for their continued support during her time away.

KATSEYE in August 2025 in ChicagoCredit: Natasha Moustache/Getty

“Thank you so much for all the love and support you've been sending my way,” Bannerman said at the time. “I'm really grateful for the patience and kindness everyone has shown during this time."

She continued, "HxG and I are having positive conversations and I feel supported. I'm happy and I'm healthy. I'll share more soon. Thank you for always being there for me.”

Fans noticed that Bannerman appeared to remove any reference to KATSEYE from her Instagram bio around that time.

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KATSEYE found fame in 2024 after forming on the reality competition series Dream Academy the prior year. Their road to becoming a band was released as the Netflix series Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE.

The "Gabriela" group has released two EPs SIS (Soft Is Strong) in 2024 and Beautiful Chaos in 2025.

WILD, their third EP, is due Aug. 14.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”