Dua Lipa - Don't Start Now - Chord

Key D major – B minor Chords Bm, D, Em, G, A Easy key G (capo 7)

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Capo 0

Bm                  D       Em
 If you don't wanna see me

           Em
Did a full 180
Bm     G                        D
Crazy, thinking about the way I was
       A       Em
Did heartbreak change me
Bm          G                  D     A
 Maybe, but look at where I ended up

        Em
I'm all good already
         Bm
So moved on it's scary
        G                    D   A
I'm not where you left me at all

  Bm                    D
So if you don't want to see me
               Em      G
Dancing with somebody
Bm               D
 If you wanna believe that
               Em       G
Anything could stop me

           Em
Don't show up
           Bm
Don't come out
            G               D    A
Don't start caring about me now
      Em
Walk away
         Bm
You know how
            G               D    A
Don't start caring about me now

               Em       Bm
Aren't you the guy who tried to
G                         D    A
Hurt me with the word goodbye
          A         Em      Bm
Though it took some time to, survive you
    G                   D    A
I'm better on the other-side

        Em
I'm all good already
         Bm
So moved on it's scary
        G                    D   A
I'm not where you left me at all

  Bm                    D
So if you don't want to see me
               Em      G
Dancing with somebody
Bm               D
 If you wanna believe that
               Em       G
Anything could stop me

           Em
Don't show up
           Bm
Don't come out
            G               D    A
Don't start caring about me now
      Em
Walk away
         Bm
You know how
            G               D    A
Don't start caring about me now

Em  Bm  G  D  A

Em  Bm
    Don't come out
        G                    D   A
I'm not where you left me at all

  Bm                    D
So if you don't want to see me
               Em      G
Dancing with somebody
Bm               D
 If you wanna believe that
               Em       G
Anything could stop me

           Em
Don't show up
           Bm
Don't come out
            G               D    A
Don't start caring about me now
      Em
Walk away
         Bm
You know how
            G               D    A
Don't start caring about me now

End of song Play again?

Dua Lipa - Don't Start Now Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Dua Lipa – Don't Start Now: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Bm and ends on A. Its chords belong to both D major and Bm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

D major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

B minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

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

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the B minor side because it opens on Bm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from D 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 D or to Bm; 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 D major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	D	Tonic — home	D · F# · A	21×
ii	Em	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · B	21×
iii	F#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	F# · A · C#	—
V/vi	F#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bmsecondary dominant	F# · A# · C#	—
IV	G	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · B · D	20×
V	A	Dominant — strongest pull home	A · C# · E	15×
vi	Bm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	B · D · F#	21×
vii°	C#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C# · E · G	—

Seen from B minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Bm	Tonic — home	B · D · F#	21×
ii°	C#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C# · E · G	—
III	D	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A	21×
iv	Em	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G · B	21×
v	F#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	F# · A · C#	—
V	F#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F# · A# · C#	—
VI	G	Submediant — warm colour	G · B · D	20×
VII	A	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	A · C# · E	15×

Analysis

The key pair is D major and its relative B minor (2 sharps). 5 different chords appear 98 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

Em Bm Dii → vi Bmiv → iminor plagal ×14
G D DIV → Iplagal cadence BmVI → III ×14
A Bm DV → videceptive cadence BmVII → iAeolian arrival ×3
G Bm DIV → vi BmVI → iVI → i ×3

The move to watch is Em → Bm, heard 14 times. From the Bm side it is iv → i (minor plagal: deep and melancholic); from the D side it reads ii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

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

No capo — open D shapes
Capo 2 + C shapes
Capo 5 + A shapes

With B minor shapes

Capo 2 + Am shapes
Capo 7 + Em shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

5 semitones up · capo 7 keeps the original pitch
2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The opening Bm lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The chords that keep coming back are Bm, D, Em, G; read them as vi–I–ii–IV in D or i–III–iv–VI in Bm. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on Em → Bm (ii → vi in D, iv → i in Bm): minor plagal — deep and melancholic. The final chord is A; the ear comes to rest in D.

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.