We’ve heard them on TikTok telling us everything is gnarly. And to be honest everything is Gnarly.
Katseye is the first-ever girl group that was formed using KPOP methodolgies.The six members consist of Daniela from Atlanta, GA, Lara from Los Angeles, CA, Manon from Zurich, Switzerland, Megan from Honolulu, HI, Sophia from Manila, Phillippines, and Yoonchae from Seoul, South Korea.
Are we in for a Katseye summer???
Who is Katseye?
Starting off, Manon has been writing songs since she was 15 years old, and because of her global background she exudes confidence, something that was notable for HYBE management. Daniela has been dancing since she was four years old, while also garnering attention in ballroom dancing on America’s Got Talent as well as So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation. Lara, a first generation Indian- American, has dreamed of pop stardom since she was 4 years old, she even appeared in a campaign for Michelle Obama’s Global Girls Alliance. Megan began dancing at four years old, she loved modeling, acting, and playing ukulele. Yoonchae the youngest (maknae) of the group passed audition for CJ ENM a South Korean Entertainment and retail company in 2020, and was a trainee there for two years. Last but not least Sophia; She has been singing since she was three, calling it her “first love”, as she was also one of the strongest candidates for the girl group in Dream Academy.
Their New EP: Beautiful Chaos Track List
“Gnarly”
“Gnarly” kickstarts the album. At first listen “Gnarly” is a controversial song. Though the song itself is a testament for the groups declaration of identity. It’s unapologetically bratty, loud, and hyper-feminine.
In the “Gnarly” music video, we can see Daniela’s expertise skill as the main dancer. Because of the catchy chorus and fun dance, “Gnarly” took TikTok by storm. The dance itself can be described as controlled chaos; The illusion of disorder with tight structure. The overall dance movement mirrors the erratic and glitchy energy of the song, creating intentional assymetry in the formations and transitions.
The group styling in the music video is a mixed palette of whites, reds, and blacks with slight pops of green. The groups’ outfits also play around with lace, mesh, leather, and knit. It’s beautifully visible chaos with deliberate contrast.
“Gnarly” Ft. Ice Spice
Ice Spice brings a refreshing verse in “Gnarly.” Not only does she invigorate the song, she also adds an effortless dominance to the song. There’s more breathing room in the song because of Ice Spice’s verse, leaving room for an extended instrumental pause.
Ice Spice is one of the most visible female rappers in pop culture right now. Her presence legitimizes that Katseye is not only a K-pop adjacent girl group, but one that belongs in the global pop conversation. The remix trades chaos for cool, attitude for authority, and expands Katseye’s reach while staying on-brand.
“Gabriela”
The second song in the album is “Gabriela”, drawing from Latin pop, reggaeton, and Afrobeats-adjacent influence. The flamenco style guitar flourishes and adds a sultry tone to the track. It’s a sonic seduction that creates a space for the vocals to lead the mood.
The dance for “Gabriela” takes cues from Latin ballroom, bachata, and urban contemporary. We can see Daniela’s ballroom dancing skills really bloom in this music video.
The color story in this music video includes all the girls are wearing one singular color, that being red or black. The red garbs represent passion, heat, love, and danger. The black look also incorporates blush hues and gold accents. These outfits give power, desire, and femme mystique; A transformation into predators, not prey. Lastly the wedding scene, each member portrays a different bridesmaid archetype, with the center, Daniela, as the runaway bride.
“Gameboy”
The third song on the tracklist blends bubblegum hyperpop, 2000s dance-pop, and gamecore elements. “Gameboy” uses gaming metaphors to critique manipulative relationships, being objectified, and power dynamics in love and fame. “Gameboy” is a pixelated disstrack dressed in glitter. It’s a hyper-femme fantasy where Katseye flips the narrative and wins the game.
The dance blends pop-locking, bounce-heavy isolation and hand-focused gestures, as well as simple footing movments, making it an easy-to-follow TikTok dance.
Lara did have an injury during filming of the music video, hence why she wasn’t in the original choreo with the rest of the girls.
The overall color schemes of “Gameboy” are denim, pink, silver, and pops of teal and red; Everything you could want in a Y2K track. The textures are fuzzy, metallic, mesh, denim, and leather. “Gameboy” visuals channel digital avatars, fashion dolls, and Bratz-era attitude.
“Mean Girls”
“Mean Girls” is a mid-tempo synth pop ballad. The tempo is restrained, and the production is atmospheric and floaty. “Mean girls” is not about your typical brat, it’s actually quite the opposite. It’s about emotional violence, internalized mysogyny, and healing from wounds that come with girlhood. It also can’t go unsaid that Katseye kept the line “God bless the T girls” something that speaks to the Trans-women in the Katseye community. It really is a song for the girls, which is one of the reasons why Katseye is the new definition of a pop girl group.
So far we don’t have a dance for “Mean Girls”, primarily because the song is synthy with a heavy focus on lyrcism.
“M.I.A”
“M.I.A” the album’s reprise, is a high-energy electro-pop banger, with pulsating synths and four-on-the-floor drums. It’s confident, and unapologetically bold. It has the end-of-the-night club vibes. It finishes Beautiful Chaos on a high-note.
Overall takeaways
The entiriety of the album is beautiful chaos at it’s core. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions, from abandoning the bad to embracing a new true identity, loud, bratty, and diverse. The group embodies genre-bending, displaying their diverse vocal ranges, backgrounds, and talents in a chaotic and messy showcase; Because that’s girlhood. It’s theatrical and campy. Katseye isn’t trying to be anyone’s favorite pop girl group, they’re trying to be everyone’s unforgettable glitch in the pop system. Their second EP Beautiful Chaos is available now on all music streaming platforms.
