Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever - Chord

Key C major – A minor Chords E7, Am, C, F, G, Dm7, Fm, Cadd9 … Easy key G (capo 5)

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Capo 0

G        Cadd9
When I'm away from you
                 E7
I'm happier than ever
                        Am
Wish I could explain it better
                 Dm7    G
I wish it wasn't true, mmmm

         Cadd9
Give me a day or two
                      E7
To think of something clever
                 Am
To write myself a letter
                  Dm7  G
To tell me what to do, mmmm

C
  Do you read my interviews
   E7
Or do you skip my avenue
     Am
When you said you were passin' through
      Dm7b5
Was I even on your way
   C
I knew when I asked you to (When I asked you to)
    E7
Be cool about what I was tellin' you
      Am
You'd do the opposite of what you said you'd do (What you said you'd do)
        Dm7b5
And I'd end up more afraid
             E7
Don't say it isn't fair
                                   Am      Am/G   D/F#
You clearly weren't aware that you made me miserable, ooh
           Dm7         G7
So if you really wanna know

         Cadd9
When I'm away from you (When I'm away from you)
                  E7
I'm happier than ever (I'm happier than ever)
                        Am
Wish I could explain it better (Wish I could explain it better)
                 Dm7    G
I wish it wasn't true, mmmm

C  E7  Am  F  Fm

C              E7                  Am
You called me again, drunk in your Benz
               F          Fm
Drivin' home under the influence
C                 E7                      Am
You scared me to death but I'm wastin' my breath
                  F            Fm
'Cause you only listen to your fuckin' friends
C                    E7
I don't relate to you
Am                     F
I don't relate to you, no
                  C               E7
'Cause I'd never treat me this shitty
            Am            F
You made me hate this city

                 C                     E7
And I don't talk shit about you on the internet
           Am              F
Never told anyone anything bad
                   C                         E7
'Cause that shit's embarrassing, you were my everything
                 Am                      F
And all that you did was make me fuckin' sad
   C                            E7
So don't waste the time I don't have
    Am                        F
And don't try to make me feel bad
                   C                          E7
I could talk about every time that you showed up on time
                Am                          F
But I'd have an empty line 'cause you never did
               C                     E7
Never paid any mind to my mother or friends, so I
              Am                         F
Shut them all out for you 'cause I was a kid

C                     E7
You ruined everything good
       Am                     F
Always said you were misunderstood
C                        E7
Made all my moments your own
Am                    F
Just fuckin' leave me alone
 
C  E7  Am  F
 
C  E7  Am  F  Fm  C

End of song Play again?

Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Billie Eilish – Happier Than Ever: key and chord analysis

The song opens on G and ends on C. 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)
#7 = G# (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: we can't honestly pick a side here — the song moves freely between C major and A minor because it comes to rest on C, Am is heard 21 times against 20 for C and the major V chord points straight at Am. Try reading the chords both ways and see which feels more like home to you.

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	17×
I	Cadd9	Tonic — home	C · E · G · D	3×
ii7	Dm7	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D · F · A · C	4×
iiø7	Dm7b5	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F · Ab · C	2×
V/V	D/F#	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Gsecondary dominant	D · F# · A	1×
iii	Em	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	E · G · B	—
V7/vi	E7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B · D	20×
IV	F	Subdominant — moves away from home	F · A · C	14×
iv	Fm	Minor iv — borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	F · Ab · C	4×
V	G	Dominant — strongest pull home	G · B · D	4×
V7	G7	Dominant — strongest pull home	G · B · D · F	1×
vi	Am	Relative minor — the melancholy side	A · C · E	20×
vi	Am/G	Relative minor — the melancholy side	A · C · E	1×
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	20×
i	Am/G	Tonic — home	A · C · E	1×
ii°	Bdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	B · D · F	—
III	C	Relative major — the bright side	C · E · G	17×
III	Cadd9	Relative major — the bright side	C · E · G · D	3×
iv7	Dm7	Subdominant — moves away from home	D · F · A · C	4×
ivø7	Dm7b5	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F · Ab · C	2×
IV	D/F#	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	D · F# · A	1×
v	Em	Minor dominant — soft pull	E · G · B	—
V7	E7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	E · G# · B · D	20×
VI	F	Submediant — warm colour	F · A · C	14×
vi	Fm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · Ab · C	4×
VII	G	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	G · B · D	4×
VII7	G7	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	G · B · D · F	1×

Analysis

The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 12 different chords appear 91 times in total; 8 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Am brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from C, the same E7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Am. D/F# acts as a secondary dominant, briefly pointing at another chord of the key. Fm is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

E7 Am CV7/vi → visecondary resolution AmV7 → iharmonic-minor cadence ×20
F C CIV → Iplagal cadence AmVI → III ×10
Fm C Civ → Iminor plagal Amvi → III ×4
Dm7 G Cii7 → Vii → V Amiv7 → VII ×3
G Cadd9 CV → Iauthentic cadence AmVII → III ×2
G C CV → Iauthentic cadence AmVII → III ×2

The move to watch is E7 → Am, heard 20 times. From the C side it reads V7/vi → vi (secondary resolution: E7 resolves a fourth up to Am); from the Am side it is V7 → i (harmonic-minor cadence: the major V resolves dramatically). 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 E7, land on E, G#, B — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Am, land on A, C, E — 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.
When E7 comes, swap the scale's G for G#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.
On Fm, follow the chord's notes (F · Ab · C) 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 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

The song's harmonic story

The opening G lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The chords that keep coming back are E7, Am, C, F; read them as V7/vi–vi–I–IV in C or V7–i–III–VI in Am. E7 is the interesting twist: in C it is a chromatic chord (V7/vi), while in Am it becomes the dominant (V7) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on E7 → Am (V7/vi → vi in C, V7 → i in Am): secondary resolution — E7 resolves a fourth up to Am. It closes on C, letting the C 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.