KATSEYE Opens SNL Season 52 as the Show's First Musical Guest

KATSEYE kicked off Saturday Night Live's Season 52 premiere on September 27 (KST) as the season's first musical guest, their debut appearance on the show. The group performed two songs from their third EP WILD and then turned up in a sketch to parody the very competition that put them together.

For their first performance, they opened with Animal, the pre-release track off WILD. Midway through the set, the members shed their jackets, and under red stage lighting, leaned into the song's more provocative energy with sharp, committed expression work. It was the kind of performance that announces itself: no half measures, no easing in.

A tropical gear shift

The second stage, Hootie Frutti, flipped the mood entirely. The set was dressed as a tropical fruit juice stall, and the group played into it with a looser, sunnier energy that let the track's addictive chorus land right. Where Animal felt like a statement, Hootie Frutti felt like the exhale.

Then came the comedy. KATSEYE appeared in an SNL sketch parodying The Debut: Dream Academy, the Hybe and Geffen Records global audition series that selected the group in 2023. Rather than reprising their roles as contestants, they came back as judges, playing the bit with enough ease that it read less like a cameo and more like a genuine comedic performance. It's a smart bit of self-awareness: owning the origin story rather than quietly stepping past it.

Building momentum in the US

The SNL appearance fits a clear pattern of US television push. KATSEYE has recently performed on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and TODAY, building a steady presence in American mainstream media. Billboard spotlighted their SNL debut, calling them one of the most successful girl groups in the world and citing the performance as evidence of their growing influence in the mainstream market.

The group is also nominated in four categories at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards: Best Group, Song of Summer, Best K-Pop, and Best Choreography.

Looking further ahead, KATSEYE is set to perform at the 2026 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour, taking the opening night stage in Dallas-Fort Worth on December 1.