Rihanna - Dancing In The Dark - Chord

Key C major – A minor Chords F, C, G, Am, Em Easy key G (capo 5)

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Capo 0

C
 I wanna dance in the dark
F
 We gonna light up the night
C
 I wanna dance in the dark
F
 We gonna light up the night

C
Underdogs dance in the middle of the night
     F
Can see the night skies in the mirror of your eyes
C
If you don't dance make sure you got the rhythm
F
Make sure that your heartbeat beats with the rhythm
  C
I wanna run wild in the middle of the night
F
Right under the moon, bodies glowing in the night
C
Nothing in between our skins but the rhythm
F
Make sure that your heartbeat beats with the rhythm

     F    G            Am   Em F
The night time is the right    time

C
I wanna dance in the dark and never stop
F
 We gonna light up the night like shooting stars
C
Whenever you hear the sound don't be alarmed
F
Ooh ooh ooh
Dancing in the dark

C
Underdogs dance in the middle of the night
     F
Can see the night skies in the mirror of your eyes
C
If you don't dance make sure you got the rhythm
F
Make sure that your heartbeat beats with the rhythm
  C
I wanna run wild in the middle of the night
F
Right under the moon, bodies glowing in the night
C
Nothing in between our skins but the rhythm
F
Make sure that your heartbeat beats with the rhythm

     F    G            Am   Em F
The night time is the right    time

C
I wanna dance in the dark and never stop
F
 We gonna light up the night like shooting stars
C
Whenever you hear the sound don't be alarmed
F
Ooh ooh ooh
Dancing in the dark

C
I wanna dance in the dark 
F
We gonna light up the night 
C
I wanna dance in the dark 
F
We gonna light up the night

C
I wanna dance in the dark and never stop
F
 We gonna light up the night like shooting stars
C
Whenever you hear the sound don't be alarmed
F
Ooh ooh ooh
Dancing in the dark

End of song Play again?

Rihanna - Dancing In The Dark Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Rihanna – Dancing In The Dark: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

C major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = B (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = F (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

A minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = F (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = G (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the C major side because it opens on C and C is heard 18 times against 2 for Am. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from A minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to C or to Am; 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 C major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	C	Tonic — home	C · E · G	18×
ii	Dm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D · F · A	—
iii	Em	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	E · G · B	2×
V/vi	E	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	—
IV	F	Subdominant — moves away from home	F · A · C	22×
V	G	Dominant — strongest pull home	G · B · D	2×
vi	Am	Relative minor — the melancholy side	A · C · E	2×
vii°	Bdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	B · D · F	—

Seen from A minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Am	Tonic — home	A · C · E	2×
ii°	Bdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	B · D · F	—
III	C	Relative major — the bright side	C · E · G	18×
iv	Dm	Subdominant — moves away from home	D · F · A	—
v	Em	Minor dominant — soft pull	E · G · B	2×
V	E	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	E · G# · B	—
VI	F	Submediant — warm colour	F · A · C	22×
VII	G	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	G · B · D	2×

Analysis

The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 5 different chords appear 46 times in total; 5 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

F C CIV → Iplagal cadence AmVI → III ×17
G Am CV → videceptive cadence AmVII → iAeolian arrival ×2
F G CIV → VIV → V AmVI → VIIVI → VII ×2

The move to watch is F → C, heard 17 times. From the C side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending); from the Am side it is VI → III. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

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

No capo — open C shapes
Capo 3 + A shapes
Capo 5 + G shapes

With A minor shapes

No capo — open Am shapes
Capo 5 + Em shapes
Capo 7 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

5 semitones down · capo 5 keeps the original pitch
2 semitones up

The song's harmonic story

Starting on C, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The backbone is F, C, G, Am — IV–I–V–vi from the C side, VI–III–VII–i from the Am side. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on F → C (IV → I in C, VI → III in Am): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. Ending on F, the song seals C as home.

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.