KATSEYE released “WILD” on August 14 through HYBE x Geffen Records, arriving after the six-track EP surpassed 1.27 million Spotify pre-saves to become the most pre-saved girl group project in the platform’s history, a commercial milestone that lands as the group navigates its most ambitious and most complicated release window yet.
Key Takeaways
- KATSEYE’s third EP “WILD” was released August 14 through HYBE x Geffen Records, featuring six tracks including Billboard Hot 100 entries “Pinky Up” (No. 28) and the Ed Sheeran co-written “Animal” (No. 24).
- The EP surpassed 1.27 million Spotify pre-saves before release, setting a new all-time record for the most pre-saved girl group project on the platform.
- The release is flanked by the limited theatrical premiere of “KATSEYE: WILD HEARTS,” an Emmy-nominated Nadia Hallgren-directed documentary that debuted August 12, and the 31-date WILDWORLD Tour opening September 1 in Dublin.
- KATSEYE is currently operating as a four-member group following temporary hiatuses by Manon Bannerman (February 2026) and Sophia Laforteza (August 2026), both citing health and wellbeing.
- The group won New Artist of the Year at the 52nd American Music Awards in May 2026 and previously earned a Grammy nomination for “Gabriela.”
Six Tracks Built Around Two Hot 100 Singles and a Member-Produced Bonus Cut
The “WILD” tracklist opens with “Pinky Up,” the hyperpop and techno-pop lead single that dropped in April and peaked at No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. Produced by “Hitman” Bang, Dwilly, and Frants, the track established the EP’s sonic direction: harder-edged, more kinetic, and less restrained than anything on the group’s prior releases. “Animal” follows as the second single, a track co-written by Ed Sheeran that debuted at No. 24 on the Hot 100 and carries a music video starring Demi Moore. That pairing alone, a six-member girl group formed through a reality competition landing an Oscar-winning actress in a music video, signals the scale of the infrastructure backing this release cycle.
The three new tracks, “Hootie Frutti,” “Bel Air,” and “That Way,” fill out the standard edition. “Bel Air,” at three minutes and thirty seconds, is the longest track on the project, while “Hootie Frutti” has already entered promotional rotation with a performance on NBC’s “Today” on release day. The Target-exclusive bonus track “Unloveu” carries a distinction that sets it apart from the rest of the tracklist: member Lara Raj co-wrote and co-produced it. For a group whose catalog has been shaped primarily by external hitmakers, including Ryan Tedder, Cashmere Cat, and Omer Fedi across previous EPs, a member-produced cut represents a deliberate step toward creative authorship.
The EP runs just over 15 minutes across its six tracks. KATSEYE has never released a full-length album, building their catalog entirely through EPs since their 2024 debut “SIS (Soft Is Strong).” That format choice, whether strategic or developmental, means “WILD” functions less as a complete artistic statement and more as a concentrated burst of material designed to fuel a touring and promotional cycle that extends through the end of the year.
The WILDWORLD Tour Sold Out Pre-Sale Across Multiple Dates
The 31-date WILDWORLD Tour, produced by Live Nation, opens September 1 at Dublin’s 3Arena and runs through arena venues across Europe before crossing to North America in October. The European leg includes stops in London, Manchester, Paris, Amsterdam, Cologne, Antwerp, and Copenhagen. The North American leg covers Miami, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles, among other cities.
Tickets sold out during pre-sale across multiple dates, prompting the addition of second shows in London, Elmont (New York), Los Angeles, and Mexico City. Those additional dates also sold out, bringing the total from the originally announced 27 shows to 31. The tour is KATSEYE’s first world tour and second concert tour overall, following the Beautiful Chaos Tour that supported their 2025 EP of the same name.
The tour will be performed by the four currently active members: Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, and Yoonchae Jeung. KATSEYE’s choreography-intensive performance style, built around synchronized routines that demand full-group precision, will need to be reworked for a four-member configuration across arena stages. That adaptation was already tested at Coachella in April, where KATSEYE performed without Manon Bannerman, and will continue to evolve as the WILDWORLD Tour moves through its 31-date schedule.
“WILD HEARTS” Documents the Group’s Rise and Addresses Bannerman’s Absence
Two days before the EP dropped, KATSEYE premiered “KATSEYE: WILD HEARTS” in limited theaters worldwide on August 12. Directed by Emmy-nominated filmmaker Nadia Hallgren, the documentary picks up where Netflix’s “Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE” left off, tracing the group’s trajectory from the Dream Academy competition in 2023 through their rapid commercial ascent.
The documentary includes footage of all six original members, including Manon Bannerman, who has been on hiatus from group activities since February 2026. The remaining members addressed Bannerman’s absence directly in the film. Sophia Laforteza, who has since begun her own hiatus as of August 2026, described Bannerman’s departure as “definitely sad” and noted that Bannerman “connects with people at an incredible level.” The group has consistently framed both hiatuses as temporary and has declined to set timelines for either member’s return.
The documentary is positioned as a companion piece to the “WILD” EP rather than a standalone release. For EYEKONS, the group’s dedicated fanbase, “WILD HEARTS” serves a dual function: it provides emotional context for a release cycle that has unfolded under unusual circumstances, and it reinforces the narrative that KATSEYE’s identity is rooted in the bond between its members rather than any single configuration of the lineup.
Two and a Half Years from Dream Academy to Arena Headliner
KATSEYE was formed in 2023 through Dream Academy, a reality competition series produced as a joint venture between HYBE and Geffen Records. Six members were selected from 120,000 worldwide applicants: Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Manon Bannerman, Megan Skiendiel, Sophia Laforteza, and Yoonchae Jeung. The group released its debut EP “SIS (Soft Is Strong)” in August 2024, followed by “Beautiful Chaos” in June 2025, which produced the Grammy-nominated single “Gabriela” and fan favorites “Gnarly” and “Gameboy.”
The commercial acceleration from “Beautiful Chaos” to “WILD” has been steep. “Animal” debuted higher on the Hot 100 than any previous KATSEYE single. The EP’s pre-save record on Spotify indicates a fanbase that has organized itself around release-day metrics in ways that mirror K-pop promotional strategies, a reflection of HYBE’s influence on the group’s marketing infrastructure even as KATSEYE operates within the Western pop market through Geffen.
At the 52nd American Music Awards in May 2026, KATSEYE won New Artist of the Year, an industry-level validation that arrived just months before “WILD” was scheduled to drop. Lara Raj, speaking to the Associated Press ahead of the EP’s release, described the project as a meaningful evolution for the group. The four active members have positioned “WILD” as the beginning of a new chapter, one that reflects more personal creative input and a willingness to push into territory that feels, in Raj’s words, “open, boundless, and entirely their own.”
Whether that creative ambition can sustain itself across two member absences, a 31-date world tour, and an industry that measures girl group viability in streaming metrics and chart positions will be the question that defines the rest of KATSEYE’s 2026.
FAQs
What Songs Are on KATSEYE’s “WILD” EP?
The standard edition of “WILD” includes five tracks: “Pinky Up,” “Animal,” “Hootie Frutti,” “Bel Air,” and “That Way.” A sixth track, “Unloveu,” is available as a Target-exclusive bonus. “Unloveu” was co-written and co-produced by group member Lara Raj, marking the first time a KATSEYE member has received a production credit on the group’s released material.
Why Are Two KATSEYE Members on Hiatus?
Manon Bannerman began a temporary hiatus in February 2026 to focus on her health and wellbeing. Sophia Laforteza announced her own hiatus in August 2026, also citing physical and mental health. Neither departure has been described as permanent, and both members appear in the “KATSEYE: WILD HEARTS” documentary. The group is continuing all scheduled activities with four active members: Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, Megan Skiendiel, and Yoonchae Jeung.
When Does the KATSEYE WILDWORLD Tour Start?
The WILDWORLD Tour opens September 1, 2026, at Dublin’s 3Arena. The 31-date tour, produced by Live Nation, spans arena venues across Europe through September before moving to North America in October, with stops including Miami, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Additional shows were added in London, Elmont (New York), Los Angeles, and Mexico City after pre-sale tickets sold out.
