Portrait · Gage Skidmore / CC BY-SA 3.0

Joe Keery

Actor and musician

Born 1992

Joe Keery is an American actor and musician, born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, on April 24, 1992. His full name is Joseph David Keery; he records as Djo. He attended River Valley Charter School and Newburyport High School before moving into formal actor training. Growing up in Newburyport remains a reference point in his work. In his 2024 hometown conversation, he described the family setting behind his music and the transition into Chicago life in his early twenties. The memories connect his Massachusetts upbringing with the city later evoked by End of Beginning. Music began before the television breakthrough. School of Rock encouraged him and a friend to play together as children. His parents introduced records by the Beatles and Bruce Springsteen, and high-school garage playing continued into his college years. Joining Post Animal gave him experience in a working Chicago band; Djo later became the name for his solo recordings. He graduated from DePaul University’s Theatre School with a BFA in acting in 2014. The university’s commencement record identifies the degree and graduating class. Chicago also involved restaurant work. In a September 2026 conversation with Jay Watson, Keery recalled working as a waiter alongside Matt Williams before getting to know future Post Animal bandmates. A shared interest in Pond helped bring those musicians together. His mother and two sisters work as teachers; he described teaching as another life he might have pursued. Henry Gamble’s Birthday Party cast him as Gabe in 2015. He initially auditioned for Jonathan Byers before being cast as Steve Harrington in Stranger Things. The role expanded into a regular part of the series in its second season. Stranger Things introduced his Steve Harrington performance in 2016. The cast shared a Screen Actors Guild ensemble award in 2017. Spree placed him in the leading role of Kurt Kunkle in 2020. Free Guy followed in 2021, with Keery playing Keys. Finally Dawn cast him as Sean Lockwood. Fargo gave him the role of Gator Tillman in its fifth season. In the April 2025 NYLON interview, he recalled living in Calgary, preparing physically for Gator and writing his third Djo album following his breakup with Maika Monroe. These experiences form the background to The Crux. Djo’s album sequence runs from Twenty Twenty in 2019 to DECIDE in 2022 and The Crux in 2025. A deluxe edition of The Crux followed in September 2025. Keery’s songwriting conversation with Coup de Main describes a collaborative practice rather than a screen character’s side project. Adam Thein contributes to the recordings, while Keery develops lyrics from experiences that feel emotionally credible to him. He describes trying to locate a usable truth inside a song instead of treating an appealing sound as its complete purpose. The Crux also brought visual authorship. Its cover was staged as a fictional hotel on the Paramount Studios backlot. Keery worked with collaborators including photographer Neil Krug and Jake Hirshland on the densely populated scene, drawing on cinema as part of the design process. His November 2025 Esquire conversation looks back on nearly a decade playing Steve and the changing circumstances around the end of Stranger Things. He discusses the overlap between acting and the growing Djo career, with the final season marking a professional transition. Cold Storage adds the film role of Teacake in 2026. The official cast record places him alongside Liam Neeson and Georgina Campbell. The latest checked interview, published September 29, 2026, follows Djo’s touring alongside Tame Impala and Pond. Keery and Watson compare road life with time spent making films, placing the current touring musician alongside the actor.

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Connected people

ConnectionWinona RyderColleague whose commitment to work and music he praises.

ConnectionCharlie HeatonStranger Things colleague and neighbour discussed in May 2025.

ConnectionAdam TheinDjo recording collaborator.

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