From left: Katseye members Lara, Yoonchae, Daniela, Manon, Megan and Sophia pose for a photo during a press conference held at Hybe's headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Wednesday. (Hybe, Geffen Record)
Katseye, a multinational and multiethnic K-pop girl group formed by Hybe in collaboration with Geffen Records, kicked off its ambitious Asia promotion to broaden its reach.
The six-member group consists of: Daniela, whose father is Venezuelan, mother is Cuban and grew up in Los Angeles; Megan, whose father is white American, mother is Chinese Singaporean and grew up in Hawaii; Lara, who was born in India and grew up in LA; Manon, whose father is Ghanaian, mother is Swiss-Italian and grew up in Zurich; Sophia from Manila, the Philippines; and Yoonchae from Seoul.
The six were selected through the global audition program, “The Debut: Dream Academy," which attracted 120,000 applicants from around the world. The group debuted in the US on June 28.
Katseye began its Asian promotional tour with a press conference conducted at Hybe's headquarters in Seoul, Wednesday. Over the next two weeks, the group will travel to the Philippines and Japan, meeting fans and appearing on music shows.
“Our strength is that we are a global girl group representing many different countries. We're all very diverse and we can bring something unique to the table, something that isn't really out there yet,” said Manon.
Leader Sophia confidently explained how Katseye differentiates itself from other K-pop groups and other overseas pop stars. “Our diverse cultural backgrounds allow us to approach a broader audience. We are different from overseas pop artists as we have been trained through an amazing structure of the K-pop methodology. We have synchronized choreographies, and we can work with each other in harmony as a team.”
Regarding the K-pop training system, members recalled that it was undoubtedly challenging, but that they learned a lot through the process.
“All six of us benefited a lot from the process and it pushed us to challenge ourselves every single day,” said Sophia.
“The number one thing that I learned was discipline and how hard you have to work to achieve what you want,” said Lara, recalling her days as a trainee.
In response to a question about the group's direction, Lara said, “We want to give importance to all parts of the world. There's no specific market that we are mainly trying to target.”
Manon said that members hardly feel any language or cultural barriers among themselves, as they’ve learned how to be a group through living together and learning new things under the same roof.
”Wherever we go, we learn a couple of phrases to pay respect to our fans and build bonds,” added Megan, stressing how all members are open to embracing new information.
“Our ultimate goal is to be a No. 1 global girl group,” said Manon.
Manon emphasized that Katseye can be an inspiration for all girls as they can represent them.
"As I grew up in Switzerland as a mixed girl, I didn't see a lot of people in the entertainment industry that looked like me. So I had a hard time believing that this could become a reality," Manon said.
"Being in a girl group where literally any single girl out there could look at us and see herself in us is inspiring to me. We can show those girls that with willpower and hard work it's possible to fulfill any dream," she said.
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