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Djo isn’t the only musical prodigy to emerge from Netflix’s Stranger Things. Actor-turned-musician Finn Wolfhard has officially released his debut album Happy Birthday, an unveiling of self that proves we may not have ever truly known him in the first place, and perhaps he prefers it that way.

An explosion that came seemingly out of nowhere, Wolfhard’s big bang is an indie folk record that honors the bones of the great works that precede it. A soul wisened far beyond his 22 years, he draws life from acts like The Beatles and tells muddled stories over acoustics the way God intended.

Wolfhard is mostly hidden within the noise, not letting the severity of his name eclipse the eccentricity of the art. His music exists completely on its own, with songs like “You” and “Everytown there’s a darling” feeling borderline spiritual. Every strum is strummed with intention and servitude, while “Choose the latter” and “Eat” explode color back into the project.

A communal effort, Happy Birthday is a mosaic made up of offerings and campfire secrets amongst genuine friends. “My dream with this album was to have friends come in, hang out and record if they wanted to. This dream came true ten times over,” Wolfhard shares via Instagram. Every step along the way of this project’s inception, he is humble and grateful, accompanied and supported.

Without much build-up or marketing ploy, the debut is a bold effort, successfully executed because it is authentically sewn. As a creative, Wolfhard was introduced to the world before he had a chance to know who he truly was; only now, and seemingly through the music, he is finally being born into himself.

Listen to Happy Birthday below: