Artist Profile
Chidi Obialo aka heavensouls aka Authks is an American experimental Hip Hop artist and producer born 2006 in Nigeria, now living in Houston Texas. He moved from Nigeria to Texas at age seven with his family and has built one of the most eclectic catalogues in experimental hip-hop comprising more than 30 releases since 2022. At just 20 years old, he's already found a very strong voice which, stylistically, spans plunderphonics, Afrobeat, glitch-hop, ambient folk, jazz and IDM. As the arranger and atmospheric half of the duo Sidepeices (sic), with Atlanta producer Stickerbush, Obialo co-created a trilogy of albums including DARKLIGHT which was praised by Bandcamp Daily as pushing online music stardom. His solo album Westside Trapped earned an A- from Paste Magazine as a virtuosic Fela Kuti-inspired tribute to Nigeria, recorded across Padova, Houston and New Orleans with family members on saxophone, violin and vocals. His recent release Cantu of the Sower is currently receiving rave critical reviews. There are currently 14 studio albums credited to heavensouls, including his collaborations with Stickerbush, under the title The Sidepeices. He also releases work under the pseudonym Authks. Standout albums to-date include solo works Bliss (2023), Northside Trapped (2024), New York Fall, 1977 (2025), Westside Trapped (2026), and Cantu of the Sower (2026), plus Afro-Surrealism (2024) and Darkskin Niggas With Lightskin Problems (2025) as The Sidepeices, plus Chidi (2022) as Authks. The artist has attracted rave reiews for his latest work such as the following from RYM: "Definitely one of my favorite albums from this year so far.. the production is so dense and there are like a million different sounds going on in just one song. Reminded me a lot of Flying Lotus, especially with the nu-jazzy elements, but much more dreamy and magical"; "What surprised me most is how dreamy and genuinely relaxing it is despite containing some of the densest electronic production I've heard this year. There were moments that reminded me of Boards of Canada, particularly in the warm and slightly psychedelic atmosphere, except everything here feels considerably more maximalist and rhythmically restless. It is simultaneously serene and chaotic, constantly surrounding you with twinkling electronics, layered samples, vocal chops, and rapid percussion". Obialo describes his discography as a "rabbit hole" — every release a surprise blend of sincerity and internet-age humour. In an October 2026 Sonemic interview, Obialo explained how surprised he was at his newfound success: "I've been so excited. I'm still in college. I had some lectures. I made some music with Stickerbush and just talked to my friends. I've just been chilling today.. I've been studying computer science and fashion design. I have a lot of experience with coding, but I also have a lot of love for fashion design. So if one didn't do well, I'd do either one". When asked where the name "heavensouls" came from Obialo explained "I made that tape called ngk! and I was 14, and I wanted to be a Cloud Rap artist, so I named myself heavensouls because "I wanted the beats to sound angelic."