Miley Cyrus - The Climb - Chord

Key E major – C# minor Chords E, A, F#m, B, C#m, G#m Easy key G

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Capo 0

E
 I can almost see it
 
 That dream I’m dreaming but
A
 There’s a voice inside my head sayin
F#m
 You’ll never reach it
E
 Every step I’m taking
 
 Every move I make feels
A
L ost with no direction
F#m
 My faith is shaking but

C#m           G#m
I got to keep trying
       A                 F#m
Got to keep my head held high

E
 There’s always going to be another mountain
 
 I’m always going to want to make it move
A
 Always going to be an uphill battle
F#m                     B
 Sometimes you going to have to lose

E
 Ain’t about how fast I get there
                                         C#m  B  A
 Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
           E
 It’s the climb

E
 The struggles I’m facing
 
 The chances I’m taking
A
 Sometimes they knock me down but
F#m
 No, I’m not breaking

E
 I may not know it
 
 But these are the moments that
A
 I’m going to remember most yeah
F#m
 Just got to keep going
    C#m
 And I
            G#m
I got to be strong
A                 F#m
Just keep pushing on

E
 There’s always going to be another mountain
 
 I’m always going to want to make it move
A
 Always going to be an uphill battle
F#m                     B
 Sometimes you going to have to lose

E
 Ain’t about how fast I get there
                                        C#m  B   A
 Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
           E
 It’s the climb

E  A  F#m  G#m  A  B

 E
There’s always going to be another mountain
 
 I’m always going to want to make it move
A
 Always going to be an uphill battle
E   F#m    G#m          A       B
 Sometimes you going to have to lose
 
E
 Ain’t about how fast I get there
                                         C#m  B   A
 Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
           E    A
 It’s the climb

        E
Keep on moving, keep climbing, keep the faith baby
A                                    E
 It’s all about, it’s all about the climb
                          A    E
Keep the faith, keep the faith

End of song Play again?

Miley Cyrus - The Climb Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Miley Cyrus – The Climb: key and chord analysis

The song opens on E and ends on E. Its chords belong to both E major and C#m, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

E major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = D# (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = A (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

C# minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = A (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = B (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the E major side because it both starts and finishes on E and E is heard 18 times against 5 for C#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from C# minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to E or to C#m; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.

Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.

Seen from E major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	E	Tonic — home	E · G# · B	18×
ii	F#m	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C#	10×
iii	G#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	G# · B · D#	4×
V/vi	G#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to C#msecondary dominant	G# · B# · D#	—
IV	A	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	18×
V	B	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · D# · F#	7×
vi	C#m	Relative minor — the melancholy side	C# · E · G#	5×
vii°	D#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	D# · F# · A	—

Seen from C# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	C#m	Tonic — home	C# · E · G#	5×
ii°	D#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D# · F# · A	—
III	E	Relative major — the bright side	E · G# · B	18×
iv	F#m	Subdominant — moves away from home	F# · A · C#	10×
v	G#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	G# · B · D#	4×
V	G#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	G# · B# · D#	—
VI	A	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	18×
VII	B	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · D# · F#	7×

Analysis

The key pair is E major and its relative C# minor (4 sharps). 6 different chords appear 62 times in total; 6 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Everything stays inside one scale, which is why the song is easy to follow by ear.

Chord movement

A E EIV → Iplagal cadence C#mVI → III ×7
B E EV → Iauthentic cadence C#mVII → III ×4
F#m C#m Eii → vi C#miv → iminor plagal ×2
F#m B Eii → Vii → V C#miv → VII ×2
A B EIV → VIV → V C#mVI → VIIVI → VII ×2

The move to watch is A → E, heard 7 times. From the E side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending); from the C#m side it is VI → III. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

E major pentatonic and C# minor pentatonic are the same five notes (E – F# – G# – B – C#): start from E for a brighter phrase, from C# for a bluesier one.
Over E, land on E, G#, B — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over A, land on A, C#, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over F#m, land on F#, A, C# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.

The song on the circle of fifths

Played in the song — chord of the key
Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
Played — borrowed or outside chord
Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii

Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.

Capo and easier keys

With E major shapes

No capo — open E shapes
Capo 2 + D shapes
Capo 4 + C shapes

With C# minor shapes

Capo 4 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

3 semitones up
2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is E; the ear learns where home is within a second. E, A, F#m, B carry the song: I–IV–ii–V relative to E, III–VI–iv–VII relative to C#m. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on A → E (IV → I in E, VI → III in C#m): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. It closes on E, letting the E side have the last word.

This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.