Major view
B major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = A# (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = E (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Toto - Africa - Chord
Key B major – G# minor Chords A, G#m, C#m, F#m, D, E, B, D#m … Easy key D
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Key: B | Abm | G#m
Capo: 0
B/F#
A/E
A G#m C#m
B D#m G#m
I hear the drums echoing tonight
B/F# A/E C#m G#m A G#m C#m
She hears only whispers of some quiet conversa - tion
B D#m G#m
She's coming in, twelve thirty flight
B/F# A/E C#m7 G#m A G#m C#m
The moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me toward salva tion
B D#m G#m
I stopped an old man along the way
B/F# A/E C#m G#m A G#m C#m
Hoping to find some long forgotten words or ancient melo ies
B D#m G#m A C#m
He turned to me as if to say “hurry boy, it's waiting there for you”
F#m D A E
Gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
F#m D A E
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A C#m E F#m
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had
A G#m C#m
Ooo Ooo
A G#m C#m
B D#m G#m
The wild dogs cry out in the night
B/F# A/E C#m G#m A G#m C#m
As they grow restless longing for some solitary compa-ny
B D#m G#m
I know that I must do what's right
B/F# A/E C#m G#m A G#m C#m
As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti
B D#m G#m
I seek to cure what's deep inside
G#m A C#m
Frightened of this thing that I've become
F#m D A E
It’s gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
F#m D A E
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A C#m E F#m
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had
A G#m C#m
Ooo Ooo
A G#m C#m
B D#m G#m
B A C#m G#m A G#m C#m
B D#7 G#m A C#m
hurry boy, she's waiting there for you
F#m D A E
It’s gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
F#m D A E
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A E
I bless the rains down in Africa
F#m D A C#m E F#m
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had
A G#m C#m
Oooo Oooo
End of song Play again?
Toto - Africa Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Toto – Africa: key and chord analysis
The song opens on B/F# and ends on C#m. Its chords belong to both B major and G#m, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
G# minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = E (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = F# (natural-minor colour)
- #7 = G (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the G# minor side because it opens on B, G#m is heard 28 times against 16 for B and the major V chord points straight at G#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from B major, and switching between the two views is exactly where the practice value lies.
Chord degrees: major and relative minor
Show the degrees above the chords — relative to B or to G#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.
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | B | Tonic — home | B · D# · F# | 10× |
| I | B/F# | Tonic — home | B · D# · F# | 6× |
| ii | C#m | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | C# · E · G# | 23× |
| ii7 | C#m7 | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | C# · E · G# · B | 1× |
| bIII | D | Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord | D · F# · A | 16× |
| iii | D#m | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | D# · F# · A# | 8× |
| V7/vi | D#7 | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to G#msecondary dominant | D# · G · A# · C# | 1× |
| IV | E | Subdominant — moves away from home | E · G# · B | 16× |
| V | F# | Dominant — strongest pull home | F# · A# · C# | — |
| v | F#m | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | F# · A · C# | 19× |
| vi | G#m | Relative minor — the melancholy side | G# · B · D# | 28× |
| bVII | A | bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord | A · C# · E | 32× |
| bVII | A/E | bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord | A · C# · E | 6× |
| vii° | A#dim | Leading-tone chord — tension | A# · C# · E | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | G#m | Tonic — home | G# · B · D# | 28× |
| bII | A | Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord | A · C# · E | 32× |
| bII | A/E | Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord | A · C# · E | 6× |
| ii° | A#dim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | A# · C# · E | — |
| III | B | Relative major — the bright side | B · D# · F# | 10× |
| III | B/F# | Relative major — the bright side | B · D# · F# | 6× |
| iv | C#m | Subdominant — moves away from home | C# · E · G# | 23× |
| iv7 | C#m7 | Subdominant — moves away from home | C# · E · G# · B | 1× |
| #IV | D | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | D · F# · A | 16× |
| v | D#m | Minor dominant — soft pull | D# · F# · A# | 8× |
| V7 | D#7 | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | D# · G · A# · C# | 1× |
| VI | E | Submediant — warm colour | E · G# · B | 16× |
| VII | F# | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | F# · A# · C# | — |
| vii | F#m | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | F# · A · C# | 19× |
Analysis
The key pair is B major and its relative G# minor (5 sharps). 12 different chords appear 166 times in total; 7 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of G#m brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from B, the same D#7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for G#m. A, D, A/E are borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.
Chord movement
- D#m G#m Biii → vi G#mv → inatural-minor cadence ×8
- C#m G#m Bii → vi G#miv → iminor plagal ×5
- D#7 G#m BV7/vi → visecondary resolution G#mV7 → iharmonic-minor cadence ×1
- C#m7 G#m Bii7 → vi G#miv7 → iminor plagal ×1
The move to watch is D#m → G#m, heard 8 times. From the G#m side it is v → i (natural-minor cadence: gentle, modal arrival); from the B side it reads iii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Improvisation tips
- B major pentatonic and G# minor pentatonic are the same five notes (B – C# – D# – F# – G#): start from B for a brighter phrase, from G# for a bluesier one.
- Over A, land on A, C#, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over G#m, land on G#, B, D# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over C#m, land on C#, E, G# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- When D#7 comes, swap the scale's F# for G: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.
- On A, follow the chord's notes (A · C# · E) rather than the key's scale — it's a borrowed colour.
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 B major shapes
- Capo 2 + A shapes
- Capo 4 + G shapes
- Capo 7 + E shapes
With G# minor shapes
- Capo 4 + Em shapes
- Capo 6 + Dm shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
- 3 semitones up
- 2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch
The song's harmonic story
Starting on B/F#, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The backbone is A, G#m, C#m, F#m — bVII–vi–ii–v from the B side, bII–i–iv–vii from the G#m side. D#7 is the interesting twist: in B it is a chromatic chord (V7/vi), while in G#m it becomes the dominant (V7) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on D#m → G#m (iii → vi in B, v → i in G#m): natural-minor cadence — gentle, modal arrival. Ending on C#m, the song seals B 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.
Toto - Africa Chords on Guitar, Ukulele and Piano
Hover over or tap a chord in the lyrics for its shapes, its degree in both keys and a listen button. Here you have every chord of the song side by side.
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