Amakiya Stopped Waiting to Be Saved. Her Debut Album “Archetype” Is the Proof

Amakiya spent years waiting for a rescue that never came, so she wrote herself one. Archetype, the Austin artist’s debut solo album, is out today, October 16, 2026, on Spaceflight Records, and its title track arrives with a new video built around a simple, hard-won idea: nobody is coming, so become the hero yourself.

Amakiya is the solo name of Chantell Moody, who previously made music with the Austin bands The Digital Wild and Fort Never. On Archetype she steps out front alone, over beats from longtime collaborator Croom, with a sound she describes as alternative electronic with hints of trip-hop and R&B. She celebrates the release with an in-store set at Waterloo Records in Austin on Tuesday, October 20, at 5:30 p.m.

What is Amakiya’s “Archetype” about?

The title track is a superhero origin story with the cape turned inward. “While writing the song Archetype, I was channeling my own inner superhero, the one I’ve needed my entire life,” Amakiya says. “I’m no longer waiting for someone to save me, I made the choice to save myself.”

Saving herself, she explains, meant doing the unglamorous work: “integrating my shadow instead of running from it, letting go of shame, and learning that it’s okay to embody righteous rage and question the status quo.” There is a nature thread running through it too. She talks about the moon and the weather moving through her the way they move through the earth, and about learning to honor emotions that come in cycles. “That’s its own kind of goddess energy.”

Then the song turns outward. Amakiya calls it “a call to action for women and femmes everywhere: stand fully in your power, take up space, lead boldly,” and a message to everyone else: “protect us, respect us, vote for our rights, and stand up for us.”

Who is Amakiya?

Before the stage name and the Afrofuturist visuals, there was a kid in Des Moines who did not fit anywhere and decided that was fine. “I was the alt-Black girl in my high school with a big mohawk, stretched ears, and combat boots,” she remembers, listening to everything from Korn to underground trip-hop to anti-folk songwriter Kimya Dawson. “I was definitely a glitch in the matrix as a kid.”

That glitch found its people. As a teenager she landed in poetry slams and the city’s hip-hop and breakdancing scene, inspired by the b-boys, b-girls and graffiti writers around her, and she floated between indie, metal and hip-hop crowds. She started making music in her late teens for a reason she says still drives her: “Music was my best friend growing up. Music made me feel like I belonged and I remember thinking: what if I could write something that made someone else feel a little less alone? Honestly, that’s still why I do this.”

How did dance and Austin shape her sound?

Amakiya left Des Moines for Austin to be around more musicians and, in her words, more creative free spirits. Austin gave her a second artistic life as a dancer. She joined Crash Alchemy, an interdisciplinary dance and circus group whose stage shows mixed performance, music, fine art and technology, and she played the lead in their show Gratitud Infinita, directed by Agent Red. Years later the same director wrote Praxis, a rock opera built around the music of her former band Fort Never.

You can hear that body-first history on the record. Amakiya calls herself an interdisciplinary artist who builds immersive worlds through music, dance and technology, drawing on Afrofuturism and energy work to turn pain into something healing. The sonic arc she describes is very physical: “whimsical melodies that give way to a bombastic, cathartic sound.”

Who produced “Archetype”?

Croom, an Austin producer and composer whose credits stretch across film, television and records, including From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series, ESPN and UFC, produced the album. His recent film scores include Realm of Shadows and Professor Kimmer’s Initiation, and his production leans on cinematic textures, analog and digital synths, and beat-driven electronics. The title track was produced by Croom in collaboration with Adriana Acuña.

The partnership goes back almost ten years. “I really just wanted to support Amakiya and give her beats that she could build on,” Croom says. “We both love film, art, poetry, and futuristic themes, and I think all of that naturally ends up in the music. She brings so much emotion and personality to what I make, and Archetype really feels like the place where all of those shared interests came together.”

Why is the album called Archetype?

Because every song plays a character. “Each song became its own archetype, a different part of myself I’ve had to face,” Amakiya says. “Together, these songs take you on a journey: from the spiritual realm, down to earth and all the complexities of being human, into the depths of the psyche, and back out into wholeness and full self-expression.”

The singles map that journey. “Running in My Dreams,” released with a video on August 25, came out of what she calls a tower card moment: a hard tour, a major surgery and the loss of her grandmother, right as the world shut down. “I learned that grief is love with nowhere left to go,” she said when it dropped. “Magical Mystical Maybe” followed on September 25, a lighter song about serendipity, the flow state she finds in dancing and singing, and the inner skeptic who keeps asking questions anyway. The title track closes the loop: the descent is over, and the hero walks out.

“This album has been my hero’s journey,” Amakiya says, “and I hope it can be a companion for someone else’s journey.”

What is Spaceflight Records?

Spaceflight Records is an Austin-based nonprofit record label. It supports musicians through physical releases, distribution and hands-on release management, with a mission of making record sales a meaningful source of income for working musicians again. If you want to back the album directly, Amakiya’s Bandcamp is the place to start.

Where can you see Amakiya live?

Austin readers can catch the release show for free at the record store itself. Amakiya performs an in-store set at Waterloo Records, 1105 North Lamar Blvd, Suite 110, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, at 5:30 p.m. Everyone else can start with the stream below and follow her for the next dates.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Amakiya?

Amakiya is the solo project of Chantell Moody, an Austin, Texas artist and producer who grew up in Des Moines, Iowa. She previously made music with the bands The Digital Wild and Fort Never, and she also performs as a dancer. Her sound is alternative electronic with trip-hop and R&B touches.

When did Amakiya release Archetype?

Archetype, Amakiya’s debut solo album, came out on October 16, 2026, on Spaceflight Records, an Austin-based nonprofit record label.

Who produced Archetype?

Austin producer and composer Croom produced the album. The title track was produced by Croom in collaboration with Adriana Acuña. Croom and Amakiya have worked together for almost a decade.

What is the song “Archetype” about?

Amakiya says she wrote it while channeling her own inner superhero, the one she needed her whole life. It is about saving yourself, integrating your shadow, letting go of shame, and a call for women and femmes to stand fully in their power.

Where can I see Amakiya perform Archetype live?

Amakiya plays an in-store set at Waterloo Records, 1105 North Lamar Blvd, Suite 110, in Austin on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, at 5:30 p.m.

What singles came before the album?

“Running in My Dreams” arrived with a video on August 25, 2026, followed by “Magical Mystical Maybe” on September 25. The title track “Archetype” got its video on release day.

Follow Amakiya

• Bandcamp: amakiya.bandcamp.com
• Spotify: Amakiya
• YouTube: @Amakiya
• Instagram: @amakiya_
• TikTok: @amakiya_
• Facebook: AmakiyaMusic
• Patreon: Amakiya

Press photos by Mesmer.