Dua Lipa - Boys Will Be Boys - Chord

Key Ab major – F minor Chords A, G, D, Bm Easy key C# (capo 7)

Add to Repertoire

No ratings yet

or your user informations

Capo 0

G                          D
It's second nature to walk home before the sun goes down
 A                              Bm
And put your keys between your knuckles when there's  boys around
G                     D
Isn't it funny how we laugh it off to hide our fear
 A                                Bm
When there's nothing funny here? 
 G                         D
Sick intuition that they taught us, so we won't freak out
A                            Bm
We hide our figures, doing anything to shut their mouths
G                           D
We smile away to ease the tension so it don't go south
A                                Bm
  But there's nothing funny now 

 G            D
When will we stop saying things
                A
'Cause they're all listening
         Bm
No, the kids ain't alright
G            D
Oh, and they do what they see
             A
'Cause it's all on TV
                     Bm
Oh, the kids ain't alright

 G
Boys will be, boys will be
 D                          A
Boys will be, boys will be boys
     Bm
But girls will be women
 G
Boys will be, boys will be
 D                          A
Boys will be, boys will be boys
     Bm
But girls will be women

 G                                 D
I'm sure if there's something that I can't find the words to say
A                                          Bm
I know that there will be a man around to save the day
 G                        D
And that was sarcasm, in case you needed it mansplained
A                            Bm
I should've stuck to ballet 

 G            D
When will we stop saying things
                A
'Cause they're all listening
         Bm
No, the kids ain't alright
G            D
Oh, and they do what they see
             A
'Cause it's all on TV
                     Bm
Oh, the kids ain't alright

 G
Boys will be, boys will be
 D                          A
Boys will be, boys will be boys
     Bm
But girls will be women
 G
Boys will be, boys will be
 D                          A
Boys will be, boys will be boys
     Bm
But girls will be women

G              D              A
  If you're offended by this song
         Bm                     G
You're clearly doing something wrong
              D             A
If you're offended by this song
               A
Then you're probably saying

Boys will be, boys will be

Boys will be, boys will be boys

But girls will be women

 G            D
When will we stop saying things
                A
'Cause they're all listening
         Bm
No, the kids ain't alright
G            D
Oh, and they do what they see
             A
'Cause it's all on TV
                     Bm
Oh, the kids ain't alright

 G
Boys will be, boys will be
 D                          A
Boys will be, boys will be boys
     Bm
But girls will be women
 G
Boys will be, boys will be
 D                          A
Boys will be, boys will be boys

But girls will be women

End of song Play again?

Dua Lipa - Boys Will Be Boys Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Dua Lipa – Boys Will Be Boys: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

Ab major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

F minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Db (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = Eb (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: we can't honestly pick a side here — the song moves freely between Ab major and F minor. 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 Ab or to Fm; 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 Ab major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Ab	Tonic — home	Ab · C · Eb	—
bII	A	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	A · C# · E	21×
ii	Bbm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Bb · Db · F	—
biii	Bm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	B · D · F#	18×
iii	Cm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	C · Eb · G	—
III	C	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	C · E · G	—
IV	Db	Subdominant — moves away from home	Db · F · Ab	—
#IV	D	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F# · A	20×
V	Eb	Dominant — strongest pull home	Eb · G · Bb	—
vi	Fm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	F · Ab · C	—
vii°	Gdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	G · Bb · Db	—
VII	G	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	G · B · D	20×

Seen from F minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Fm	Tonic — home	F · Ab · C	—
ii°	Gdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	G · Bb · Db	—
II	G	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	G · B · D	20×
III	Ab	Relative major — the bright side	Ab · C · Eb	—
#III	A	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C# · E	21×
iv	Bbm	Subdominant — moves away from home	Bb · Db · F	—
#iv	Bm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	B · D · F#	18×
v	Cm	Minor dominant — soft pull	C · Eb · G	—
V	C	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	C · E · G	—
VI	Db	Submediant — warm colour	Db · F · Ab	—
#VI	D	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F# · A	20×
VII	Eb	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Eb · G · Bb	—

Analysis

The key pair is Ab major and its relative F minor (4 flats). 4 different chords appear 79 times in total; 0 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. A is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

There's no textbook cadence here; the chords circle around each other in a loop, so the song feels more like a groove than a series of arrivals.

Improvisation tips

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

Capo 1 + G shapes
Capo 4 + E shapes
Capo 6 + D shapes

With F minor shapes

Capo 1 + Em shapes
Capo 3 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

5 semitones up · capo 7 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is G; the ear learns where home is within a second. The backbone is A, G, D, Bm — bII–VII–#IV–biii from the Ab side, #III–II–#VI–#iv from the Fm side. A briefly darkens the picture: neapolitan bii — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonic. It closes on A, letting the Ab 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.