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On August 21, Netflix dropped the 8-episode docuseries Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE. On August 27, 2024, KATSEYE gave an interview to MUCHMUSIC where the rookie girl group from HYBE x Geffen Records addressed the controversy related to their friendship.
In the docuseries, 20 girls trained and competed under a fierce survival show to debut as one of the six members of the new girl group under HYBE x Geffen Records. Viewers claimed that the show format pitted the girls against one another which led to unhealthy rivalries among them.
However, in the latest interview, the girl group member Lara stated that the documentary was from two to three years ago and now they have developed genuine love and care amongst the six members.
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"It was not easy. Like we had to put in a lot of work and prioritize like communicating with each other and you know like really work on a relationship. And I feel like it is something that is super super important to all of us. Like we are all so different. We're six girls and we really focus on our teamwork."
More about HYBE X Geffen Records global girl group KATSEYE
After competing in the survival program, The Debut: Dream Academy, six girls —Lara, Manon, Daniela, Meghan, Sophia, and Yoonchae — debuted as the official members of the global girl group. The survival program was filmed and released as an 8-episode docuseries titled, Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE.
Their first EP SIS (Soft Is Strong) was released on August 16, 2024. The EP consists of five tracks such as Debut, Touch, My Way, I'm Pretty, and Tonight I Might. The mini-album debuted at No. 119 on the Billboard 200 and No. 27 on the South Korean Albums Circle Chart.
In July 2024, during KCON L.A.'s third-night event, the girl group made their live debut as a group and performed on Touch. Meanwhile, The Hollywood Reporter reported on August 23, 2024, that the group gave a behind-the-scenes peek at how their collaboration is progressing in response to the question of revisiting the Pop Star Academy experiences.
Sophia underscored how their group dynamics have shifted since they joined the survival show. She mentioned how the members tried to remind each other not to be affected by the docuseries.
"Coming into this, knowing that a documentary is coming out, and even before we saw it, we all told each other, ‘That was us two, three years ago. We were babies going through this insanely intense, insane, intense process.' We’ve grown so much as members of KATSEYE and as sisters that nothing is going to shake how we are right now."
A total of 120,000 girls auditioned for Dream Academy, but only 20 made it to the show. After a grueling competition and eliminations, only 6 debuted. HYBE's first global girl group includes Manon (22) from Switzerland, Sophia (20) from the Philippines, Yoonchae (16) from South Korea, Meghan (18), Daniela (19), and Lara (18) from the United States.
Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE docuseries is available on Netflix for global streaming.
