KATSEYE say they receive thousands of death threats

By Charlotte Reck, CNN

(CNN) — KATSEYE, the global girl group propelled to stardom through the 2024 Netflix show “Pop Star Academy,” revealed they are frequently targets of online death threats and hate.

The diverse ensemble, based in Los Angeles but made up of six young women from countries across the globe — members hail from the United States, Switzerland, the Philippines and South Korea — told the BBC that internet scrutiny is a burden they bear.

Second-generation Indian-American Lara Raj, 20, admitted that online abuse takes a toll on the band, saying, “If a thousand people are sending you death threats … even if it’s not going to happen … it’s heavy, and it’s jarring.”

The rest of KATSEYE nodded agreement, before the interviewer, Mark Savage, asked the women if they’d all received threats of this nature.
Without hesitation, all six members of the group confirmed death threats were a common occurrence, chorusing “yes” and “so many.”

Now a K-pop phenomenon, Raj and bandmates Daniela Avanzini, Manon Bannerman, Megan Skiendiel, Sophia Laforteza and Yoonchae Jeung all earned their place in KATSEYE after an arduous 12-week audition program, “The Debut: Dream Academy,” which was streamed on YouTube.

Modeled on the K-pop artist development process and organized by K-pop entertainment leader HYBE and US label Geffen Records — the partnership behind the US distribution and promotion of megastars BTS — the hopefuls completed missions requiring them to choreograph, rehearse and perform for hours a day.

Netflix followed the 20 contestants from beginning to end, releasing a docuseries on its platform in August 2024.

Laforteza, who is 22 and originally from the Philippine capital, Manila, told the BBC the training program was “very rigorous, very demanding,” adding that it “really equipped us for where we are now.”

The band, which received Grammy nominations last week for best new artist and best group performance, shared their concerns about the power of the internet.

Laforteza and Raj said social media allows them to see how they are perceived by swathes of people from around the world, something none of the band believes to be safe; reading comments can be “terrorizing on the mind,” according to Bannerman.

She described the “constant comparison between all of us,” before the other band members explained how they are often ranked online and pitted against one another in a points-based system they said considers factors including how pretty they are, how they sing and how they perform. “It’s so dystopian,” Raj said.

Nonetheless, KATSEYE are undeterred. “We’ve all come from different places with different cultures and upbringings yet we’re able to come together and create magic through music,” Laforteza said.

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