Djo’s ‘Basic Being Basic’ Reaches No. 1 on Alternative Airplay Chart

Djo ascends to No. 1 on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart, with his single “Basic Being Basic” climbing two places to the top of the list dated July 26.

It marks the first airplay chart reign for Djo, the musical project of actor-musician Joe Keery. Previously, he peaked as high as No. 4 on Alternative Airplay with “End of Beginning” in July 2024.

Djo is the eighth first-time leader on Alternative Airplay in 2025, following maiden reigns for sombr (“Back to Friends”), Jonah Kagen (“God Needs the Devil”), Lola Young (“Messy”), Balu Brigada (“So Cold”), Justice and Tame Impala (both on “Neverender”) and almost monday (“Can’t Slow Down”).

With five months to go in the year, 2025’s mark of eight rookie No. 1 acts is already the most since 2012, when eight acts also led Alternative Airplay for the first time each. Slight catch: of those, six were lead acts (Gotye, Grouplove, Of Monsters and Men, fun., Alex Clare and The Lumineers), while two were featured vocalists (Kimbra on Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know” and Janelle Monae via fun.’s “We Are Young”); all eight in 2025 have been lead acts.

Limiting the criteria to just lead acts, one must go back to 2010. Fifteen years ago, nine acts — including eight with lead artist billing — reached No. 1 for the first time: Phoenix, Cage the Elephant, Crash Kings, Stone Temple Pilots, Dirty Heads, Neon Trees, Mumford & Sons and The Black Keys, as well as Rome as a featured artist on Dirty Heads’ “Lay Me Down.”

Could 2025 surpass 2010’s mark? Not only are there more than five months left in the year to do so, it’s also worth noting that two acts currently in the chart’s top 10 — Turnstile and Wet Leg — have never led and are still rising as of the July 26-dated ranking.

Back to Djo: concurrently, “Basic Being Basic” leaps 22-16 on the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart with 2.3 million audience impressions (up 20%) in the week ending July 17, according to Luminate.

The song is the lead single from The Crux, Djo’s third studio album. The set debuted at No. 6 on the Top Alternative Albums chart dated April 19 and has earned 79,000 equivalent album units to date.

All Billboard charts dated July 26 will update on Tuesday, July 22.