Stranger Things Star Joe Keery Isn't From Where You Think

Joe Keery is a lot of things. He's a beautiful actor no one talks about, he cuts hair as a hobby, and he's a musician who goes by the name Djo. That last one has caused some disconnect between Keery and his fans, however. His song, "End of Beginning," references Chicago, and that's partly why many people think he's from the Windy City.

In actuality, Keery is from Newburyport, Massachusetts, and he returned to his hometown over the Thanksgiving holiday in 2025, stopping by Olive's Coffee & Bakehouse — much to the excitement of the staff on call that day. The restaurant even posted a selfie to Instagram that many of the employees took with Keery. "We ended our busy Thanksgiving weekend with a visit from [Keery.] He was kind enough to take a selfie with my [Stranger Things] fans/staff," the caption read.

Keery attended DePaul University in Chicago, graduating from The Theatre School in 2014. This could have also led to fans' confusion about where he grew up. In April 2025, Keery spoke with CBS Mornings, going down memory lane about his college years. He even scored some commercial work while he lived there, something that encouraged him to keep honing his craft.

College and that Djo song aren't the only links Joe Keery has to Chicago, however. In 2015, a year before "Stranger Things" first premiered, the young actor appeared on two episodes of "Chicago Fire" — a role that was his second-recorded job on IMDb. The first was a bit part on the comedy series, "Sirens."

Interestingly, where he grew up isn't the only information fans get wrong about Keery. While promoting the final season of "Stranger Things" — in which the whole cast looks so different from Season 1 — Keery stopped by Elle for a video interview. When asked if there was anything people kept messing up about him, Keery smirked and revealed two items. The first was that he was from Costa Rica, according to his Wikipedia page, which obviously wasn't correct. The second was his birthday. "But I actually really like that," he admitted. "This is good. This is good. Maybe someone can't steal my identity or my passwords, because all my passwords are just my birthday."

Keery then joked that even close friends now believe the wrong day is his birthday. However, he did admit he's a Taurus, which means his birthday is somewhere between April 21 and May 20. His IMDb page claims he was born on April 24, as does his Wikipedia page and his entry on Famous Birthdays, so it seems like that's actually the wrong date.