Actor and musician Finn Wolfhard has released his second solo album, Fire From The Hip, marking a deliberate shift towards a brighter, more expansively produced sound influenced by classic rock and country acts. Speaking to Billboard shortly before the album's release and the start of his Common Side Effects tour, Wolfhard, now free of his long-running role in Stranger Things, described the record as a natural evolution reflecting eight years of musical development since his teens.

Unlike his previous solo effort, Happy Birthday, which was a close collaboration with Kai Slater of the band Lifeguard, Wolfhard produced Fire From The Hip himself, working with a group of Chicago-based musicians and engineers, including his touring band The Slaps. The album grew organically out of songs tested during 2025 tour soundchecks, with the band's arrangement ideas shaping the final record; The Slaps also encouraged Wolfhard, despite initial hesitation, to take on production duties himself. The 23-year-old is also known for earlier projects including Calpurnia and The Aubreys, and is separately co-writing a biopic about the band the Replacements.