‘Stranger Things’ Star and Massachusetts Native Joe Keery Hits Spotify Top 50

The town of Hawkins, Indiana has seen a lot over the last decade. The fictional town in Netflix's Stranger Things is not only home to terror and destruction, but a talented young man who hails from Massachusetts.

Joe Keery, the actor who portrays Steve Harrington on the hit show, is also a Newburyport, Massachusetts native and a very talented musician.

As Keery and his costars say goodbye to the show that made them household names, he says hello to the top of Spotify charts.

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Top of the Charts

His hit song "End of Beginning" sits atop Spotify's Top 50 in the US and No. 3 on Spotify's Global charts, not far behind HUNTR/X "Golden" and Taylor Swift's No. 1 hit "The Fate of Ophelia."

Known in the music world as Djo (pronounced "Joe"), Keery has been working on music for over a decade.

A previous founding member of psychedelic rock band Post Animal, Keery left the band in 2018 due to acting commitments, but returned to music in a solo capacity the following year.

Djo Featured Albums

2019: Djo released his first album, Twenty Twenty.

2022: Djo's second album DECIDE was released, featuring the hit song "End of Beginning"

2025: The Crux, Djo's third album, was released on April 4, 2025.

READ MORE: Massachusetts "Stranger Things" Star Suddenly Has a Radio Hit

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Why "Djo?"

Keery had already rose to fame as Steve Harrington in Stranger Things, years before launching his solo career as Djo, so why not use his real name to ride the wave?

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He explained his desire to separate his acting and music careers in the interview below: