Following the official announcement that KATSEYE's Manon Bannerman will be taking an indefinite hiatus to focus on her health, many fans have expressed that they will miss her during this period, standing with her in this hard period.
However, KATSEYE's Daniela Avanzini finds herself tangled up in drama surrounding Manon's temporary departure as her father Rafael Avanzini has made some insensitive comments about her hiatus, among other disturbing details that fans have uncovered through some super sleuthing. Under a post uploaded by Rafael Avanzini, a fan made a comment that implied Daniela was "copying" Manon and will never be an icon as good as her or LISA. This drew out the interaction as Avanzini retaliated, stating that "Daniela does not need to be like LISA or Manon." He also replied to a separate comment stating that KATSEYE would fall apart without Manon as he states, "KATSEYE does not run based off of Manon. The girls will be fine."
The comments appearing in LISA's defence were in reference to a resurfaced comment that Rafael Avanzini had made previously under a post that presented Daniela and Lisa as two options in a poll to see who K-pop fans thought was the better dancer. Rafael Avanzini made a controversial comment that carried racial undertones as the comment read, "If you have to ask DANIELA! Much better trained. Plus she's also Latina, major advantage against Asian dancers. Her hips r untouchable". Fans were outraged by the offensive comment and the unsettling nature of the way he was addressing Daniela as well.
Amidst the tension, Rafael Avanzini also responded to another Instagram comment that called him out about hurting Daniela as she was facing negative comments due to his opinion on Manon. Avanzini crafted his comment saying, "Eyekons will (be) eyekons. I talked with Dani before anything", implying that Daniela shared his sentiments about his comments on Manon and discussed the matter with her father before he had publicly spoken about it on the Internet.
Fans dug deeper into Rafael Avanzini's internet history as they dug up old Instagram story posts and TikTok reposts about Daniela which had uncomfortable connotations. In a story upload featuring Yoonchae and Daniela standing close together during the Gabriela choreography, Avanzini's caption reads "Kiss kiss her", making fans understandably disturbed. He also reposted a TikTok video captioned, "Congratulations to whoever's getting that every night", referring to Daniela in a romantic and intimate perspective. These actions shocked fans as they were appalled by the concerning and offensive nature of his actions.
With all these comments and conflict arising in the midst of Manon's untimely and sudden departure, fans are definitely uncertain about the future of the band and the hits being taken by that dynamic and chemistry that the girls had. Understandably offended and outraged by the rude comments and generalisations about Asian people that Daniela's father has made on top of the disturbing videos he had reposted, Eyekons have rallied together, calling him "creepy" and "racist" as they express their concerns.
As fans wait patiently for Daniela’s response to the controversy, Eyekons continue to voice their support for Manon during her hiatus while calling for accountability over the remarks that have cast a shadow over the group.
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