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)
Key E major – C# minor Chords C#m, F#m, B7, E, D#m, G#m, F#, C#7 … Easy key C (capo 4)
C#m F#m B7 E
'Cause ah-ah, I'm in the stars tonight
C#m F#m B7 E
So watch me bring the fire and set the night alight
C#m
Shoes on, get up in the morn'
F#m
Cup of milk, let's rock and roll
B7
King Kong, kick the drum
E
Rolling on like a Rolling Stone
C#m
Sing song when I'm walking home
F#m
Jump up to the top, LeBron
B7
Ding-dong, call me on my phone
E
Ice tea and a game of ping pong
C#m
This is getting heavy
F#m
Can you hear the bass boom? I'm ready
B7
Life is sweet as honey
E
Yeah, this beat cha-ching like money
C#m F#m
Disco overload, I'm into that, I'm good to go
B7
I'm diamond, you know I glow up
E
Hey, so let's go
C#m F#m B7 E
'Cause ah-ah, I'm in the stars tonight
C#m F#m B7 E
So watch me bring the fire and set the night alight (Hey)
C#m F#m B7 E
Shining through the city with a little funk and soul
C#m F#m B7 E
So I'ma light it up like dynamite, woah
C#m F#m
Bring a friend, join the crowd, whoever wanna come along
B7 E
Word up, talk the talk, just move like we off the wall
C#m F#m
Day or night, the sky's alight, so we dance to the break of dawn
B7 E
Ladies and gentlemen, I got the medicine so you should keep ya eyes on the ball, huh
C#m
This is getting heavy
F#m
Can you hear the bass boom? I'm ready (Woo-hoo)
B7
Life is sweet as honey
E
Yeah, this beat cha-ching like money
C#m F#m
Disco overload, I'm into that, I'm good to go
B7
I'm diamond, you know I glow up
E
Let's go
C#m F#m B7 E
'Cause ah-ah, I'm in the stars tonight
C#m F#m B7 E
So watch me bring the fire and set the night alight (Hey)
C#m F#m B7 E
Shining through the city with a little funk and soul
C#m F#m B7 E
Light it up like dynamite, woah
C#m F#m B7 E
Dyn n n n na na na, life is dynamite
C#m F#m B7 E
Dyn n n n na na na, life is dynamite
C#m F#m B7 E
Shining through the city with a little funk and soul
C#m F#m B7 E
So I'ma light it up like dynamite, woah
C#m F#m
Dyn n n n na na na, ayy
B7 E
Dyn n n n na na na, ayy
C#m F#m
Dyn n n n na na na, ayy
B7 E
Light it up like dynamite
C#m F#m
Dyn n n n na na na, ayy
B7 E
Dyn n n n na na na, ayy
C#m F#m
Dyn n n n na na na, ayy
B7 E
Light it up like dynamite
C#m F#m B7 E
'Cause ah-ah, I'm in the stars tonight
C#m F#m B7 E
So watch me bring the fire and set the night alight
C#m F#m B7 E
Shining through the city with a little funk and soul
C#m F#m B7 E
So I'ma light it up like dynamite
D#m G#m C#7 F#
(This is ah) I'm in the stars tonight
D#m G#m C#7 F#
So watch me bring the fire and set the night alight
D#m G#m C#7 F#
Shining through the city with a little funk and soul
D#m G#m C# F#
So I'ma light it up like dynamite, woah (Light it up like dynamite)
D#m G#m C#7 F#
Dyn n n n na na na, life is dynamite (Life is dynamite)
D#m G#m C#7 F#
Dyn n n n na na na, life is dynamite
D#m G#m C#7 F#
Shining through the city with a little funk and soul
D#m G#m C#7 F#
So I'ma light it up like dynamite, woah
End of song Play again?
Harmony analysis
The song opens on C#m and ends on F#. Its chords belong to both E major and C#m, so every chord below is read both ways.
Major view
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
Minor view
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the C# minor side because it opens on C#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from E major, and switching between the two views is exactly where the practice value lies.
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.
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | E | Tonic — home | E · G# · B | 30× |
| ii | F#m | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | F# · A · C# | 30× |
| V/V | F# | Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Bsecondary dominant | F# · A# · C# | 8× |
| iii | G#m | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | G# · B · D# | 8× |
| 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 | — |
| V7 | B7 | Dominant — strongest pull home | B · D# · F# · A | 30× |
| vi | C#m | Relative minor — the melancholy side | C# · E · G# | 30× |
| V7/ii | C#7 | Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to F#msecondary dominant | C# · E# · G# · B | 7× |
| V/ii | C# | Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to F#msecondary dominant | C# · E# · G# | 1× |
| vii° | D#dim | Leading-tone chord — tension | D# · F# · A | — |
| vii | D#m | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | D# · F# · A# | 8× |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | C#m | Tonic — home | C# · E · G# | 30× |
| V7/iv | C#7 | Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to F#msecondary dominant | C# · E# · G# · B | 7× |
| V/iv | C# | Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to F#msecondary dominant | C# · E# · G# | 1× |
| ii° | D#dim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | D# · F# · A | — |
| ii | D#m | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | D# · F# · A# | 8× |
| III | E | Relative major — the bright side | E · G# · B | 30× |
| iv | F#m | Subdominant — moves away from home | F# · A · C# | 30× |
| IV | F# | Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour | F# · A# · C# | 8× |
| v | G#m | Minor dominant — soft pull | G# · B · D# | 8× |
| V | G# | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | G# · B# · D# | — |
| VI | A | Submediant — warm colour | A · C# · E | — |
| VII7 | B7 | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | B · D# · F# · A | 30× |
The key pair is E major and its relative C# minor (4 sharps). 9 different chords appear 152 times in total; 5 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. F#, C#7, C# act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.
The move to watch is B7 → E, heard 30 times. From the C#m side it is VII7 → III; from the E side it reads V7 → I (authentic cadence: the strongest arrival home). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.
Starting on C#m, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The backbone is C#m, F#m, B7, E — vi–ii–V7–I from the E side, i–iv–VII7–III from the C#m side. F# adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/V — leads to B. Keep an ear on B7 → E (V7 → I in E, VII7 → III in C#m): authentic cadence — the strongest arrival home. Ending on F#, the song seals E 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.
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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