Beyond Hawkins: DJO's Joe Keery on his most personal album yet
Musician Joe Keery, aka DJO, is both excited and nervous about his upcoming album, The Crux, which will be released on 4 April. The 32-year-old, best known for playing Steve Harrington in the Netflix Sci-Fi hit, Stranger Things, gained even further mainstream recognition last year when his song "End of Beginning" went viral.
His third studio album marks a stylistic shift from his synth-heavy, bedroom-recorded past to a more expansive, guitar-driven sound evocative of late '60s and '70s pop. "I think the recording process influenced the sound", Keery told Euronews Culture.
Recorded at New York's legendary Electric Lady Studios, founded by Jimi Hendrix in the 1970s, The Crux was shaped by its environment. "We used the tools available there, which naturally shaped the album's direction", Keery explained. "I'm a big fan of music from all eras, but there's something about the pre-digital age that intrigued me this time. We tried to keep things as real and analogue as possible – less reliance on computers, more organic recording techniques."
Keery, juggling two careers at once, explained that he recorded this whole album while shooting Stranger Things, where he portrays one of the main characters, Steve Harrington.
For him, his acting and music career are feeding off each other. His characters, however, are not creeping into his music. "I'm not the type of actor who brings my work home. I like to have a little bit of a line in the sand. I'm not a method actor or anything." He concluded: "The POV is really from me."
Letting the whole world read your diary
Keery described his upcoming record The Crux as a kind of journal. "I'm writing about things happening in my life. It's not necessarily linear in how the songs are arranged, but there's definitely an overarching message", he said.
Regarding the album's message, he paused and explained that "it's about finding what's important to you, holding onto it, and appreciating the simple things – friends, family, the moments that really matter."
The musician did acknowledge, however, that putting out such personal music can feel vulnerable – after all, it's like letting the world read his diary. But to him, that's the point of art. "It's about connecting with people and being brave enough to share", he told Euronews Culture.
"You lay it all out there and hope that if someone is feeling the same way, they know they're not alone." Despite the occasional fear, he finds the process cathartic.
Keery is not only influenced by personal but also current political and societal issues. "I think it's probably creeping in on everybody. It's hard to ignore what's going on. It's a very scary time we're living in", he said.
Although he hadn't been writing new music recently, he believes that personal experiences, shaped by current events, inevitably make their way into his work. "As painful as it is to watch, and as much as everyone wants to turn away, it's important – now more than ever – to tune in", he continued.
The pressure of going viral again?
DJO's viral hit "End of Beginning" was one of those tracks that seemed impossible to escape last year. The catchy, nostalgic song captures the emotions triggered by being in a particular city – in Keery's case, Chicago, where he went to study at the Theatre School at DePaul University after graduating high school.
The hook, "And when I'm back in Chicago, I feel it. Another version of me, I was in it. I wave goodbye to the end of beginning", became especially popular on TikTok, with users pairing it with their travel videos.
With more than a dozen million hits on YouTube and over one billion streams on Spotify, the song's success raises the question: Has it put Keery under more pressure on to reproduce that level of achievement?
"Honestly, I don't know", Keery replied. While he recognises the uniqueness of the situation, he insisted that he didn't do anything different when producing the song. "You put music out, and sometimes it catches a wave. Other times, it doesn't", he added.
"Once it's out there, it's out of your control. Of course, I want my songs to connect with people, but even before 'End of Beginning', I had fans who cared about my music. I make it for myself, but also for them", he explained.
As for whether he feels pressure to have more songs go viral, Keery said that his new album feels like a blend of his first two, "but with more maturity."
Still, he acknowledged his high expectations but remained realistic. "A song going viral again would be near impossible – but that's not really the point. My goal is to enjoy the process", Keery concluded.
'Are you doing it just to be famous?'
When listening to newly released music nowadays, one notices that some of them have grown substantially shorter in length. One reason behind that could be the theory that shorter songs are somehow more poised to go viral. Keery admitted that he also fell into the trap of producing shorter songs.
"But at the end of the day, nobody can predict it. If people could, music labels would just crank it out", he said.
He believes it always comes down to why artists do what they do. "Are you doing it because you enjoy it and have something to say, or are you doing it just to be famous?" In his case, he will continue making music, "whether it goes viral or not", he concluded.
'Delete Ya'
Ahead of the album release, DJO has shared the record's second single, "Delete Ya", today. Following the release of his third studio album, he will embark on a US and European tour.
For the European leg, Keery is especially excited to visit cities and countries he's never been to before. "I think I'm most excited to visit Copenhagen. One of the lead hairdressers on Stranger Things, Sarah Hindsgaul, is from there, and she's been talking about it for years. I'm really looking forward to checking it out."
One of the highlights of the tour for him is getting to experience it with his friends – both his bandmates and his friends from Post Animal.
"It's going to be a lot of fun. Of course, I want to enjoy the shows, but I also just want to soak it all in because it's such a unique experience. Right now, at this stage in my life, I understand how fleeting things can be. So it's important to appreciate these moments, and that's exactly what I plan to do", Keery concluded.
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