📍ACL Live Moody Theater — Oct. 10, 2025
Written by Clinton Camper
By the time I made it to ACL Live on Friday night, I was running purely on festival fumes and caffeine. ACL Fest had already taken most of my energy, but Djo — a.k.a. Joe Keery — made sure the tank wasn’t empty for long.
Before his headlining set even started, he literally couldn’t stay offstage. During Post Animal’s opening set, the Stranger Things star-turned-musician surprised the crowd, hopping up to play with his old bandmates. (He co-wrote tracks on their latest album Iron, in case you missed that lore.) It was one of those “wait, is that really him?” moments that instantly sent the room buzzing.
When Post Animal wrapped, their frontman slyly pointed out that one of their members would soon return, this time as part of Djo’s touring band. A smooth handoff and a total full-circle moment for Keery’s Chicago roots.
And then it was Djo time.
The lights dropped, the crowd screamed, and suddenly it was like the Stranger Things mall episode if it had a synth-pop soundtrack and better outfits. Girls (gender neutral) were losing it, yelling “STEEVE HARRINGTON!!!” between songs — and honestly, fair.
Djo’s set was tight, immersive, and surprisingly emotional. His signature blend of warped vocals, kaleidoscopic lights, and groovy basslines hit like a late-night dream sequence. Songs like End of Beginning and Half Life turned ACL Live into a neon sea of motion and nostalgia. And when he debuted Love Can’t Break the Spell live for the first time, you could feel the collective gasp ripple through the crowd.
Somewhere during the set, a ripple of whispers spread — because yep, Sabrina Carpenter was in the building. Spotted watching from the mezzanine, looking every bit the supportive mystery muse. She and Djo have been fueling the internet’s favorite new rumor mill lately, especially after he popped out during her ACL Weekend One set (right after her viral “you’re too hot, you’re under arrest” bit). They were reportedly seen having dinner at a “small Austin restaurant,” which, if true, is my favorite kind of soft-launch.
Celebrity sightings aside, Djo’s show was more than worth the aching feet and dust hangover. He’s got serious frontman energy — confident, unpredictable, and just weird enough to make every second interesting. The encore with Post Animal sealed it perfectly, a loud and joyful exclamation mark on a night that could’ve easily been an afterthought but ended up feeling like a main event.
So yeah, I was tired. But Djo made sure I didn’t crash — he rewired me.