Shawn Mendes - Look Up At The Stars - Chord

Key D major – B minor Chords A, D, Bm, G, Em, Fmaj7, Em7, Gbm … Easy key G (capo 7)

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Capo 0

D       A      Bm                  A            G
Look up at the stars, they're like pieces of art
          Em             A
Floating above the ground 
 
D      A
It's a Friday night
        Bm               A               G
And the streetlights are all saying your name
                     Em  A
They always say your name
D      A                     Bm
Before you go home, I should let you know
       A             G
I'm so glad that you came
                    Em  A
I know that we went late
  
    D       A      Bm
But look up at the stars
             A            G
They're like pieces of art
          Em             A
Floating above the ground
    Bm            Gbm       A        Abm          G
You know we could fly so far, the universe is ours
              Em          A
I'm not gonna let you down
  
Fmaj7           Em7
I am feeling so lucky 
Fmaj7                   Em7
The sun shining down on me 
Fmaj7                       Em7
Got these angels all around mе
               A
I'll never be alonе 
 
D       A        Bm                A            G
Look up at the stars, they're like pieces of art
          Em             A
Floating above the ground
    Bm            Gbm       A        Abm          G
You know we could fly so far, the universe is ours
                  Em          A
And I'm not gonna let you down 
 
D    A                     Bm
Finally we've met, now the lights are set
     A                G
It's taken us 'til now
                       Em        A
To be together in this town, yeah
D                            A
A couple of years we've been making plans
    Bm                     A
Somehow you always seem to understand
   G                                         Em  A
So let me spend the night in wonderland with you
  
Fmaj7           Em7
I am feeling so lucky 
Fmaj7                   Em7
The sun shining down on me 
Fmaj7                       Em7
Got these angels all around me
               A
I'll never be alone 
 
D       A        Bm                A            G
Look up at the stars, they're like pieces of art
          Em             A
Floating above the ground
    Bm            Gbm       A        Abm          G
You know we could fly so far, the universe is ours
                  Em          A
And I'm not gonna let you down
 
D  A  Bm  A  G  D  Em  A
D  A  Bm  A  G  D  Em  A
D  A  Bm  A  G  D  Em  A  D

End of song Play again?

Shawn Mendes - Look Up At The Stars Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Shawn Mendes – Look Up At The Stars: key and chord analysis

The song opens on D and ends on D. 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 D major side because it both starts and finishes on D and D is heard 15 times against 14 for Bm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from B minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

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	15×
ii	Em	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · B	14×
ii7	Em7	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · B · D	6×
bIIImaj7	Fmaj7	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	F · A · C · E	6×
iii	Gbm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	Gb · A · Db	3×
V/vi	F#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bmsecondary dominant	F# · A# · C#	—
IV	G	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · B · D	14×
#iv	Abm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Ab · Cb · Eb	3×
V	A	Dominant — strongest pull home	A · C# · E	41×
vi	Bm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	B · D · F#	14×
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#	14×
ii°	C#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C# · E · G	—
III	D	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A	15×
iv	Em	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G · B	14×
iv7	Em7	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G · B · D	6×
#IVmaj7	Fmaj7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · A · C · E	6×
v	Gbm	Minor dominant — soft pull	Gb · A · Db	3×
V	F#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F# · A# · C#	—
VI	G	Submediant — warm colour	G · B · D	14×
#vi	Abm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Ab · Cb · Eb	3×
VII	A	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	A · C# · E	41×

Analysis

The key pair is D major and its relative B minor (2 sharps). 9 different chords appear 116 times in total; 7 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Fmaj7 is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

A Bm DV → videceptive cadence BmVII → iAeolian arrival ×14
Em A Dii → Vii → V Bmiv → VII ×14
A D DV → Iauthentic cadence BmVII → III ×11
G D DIV → Iplagal cadence BmVI → III ×3
Em7 A Dii7 → Vii → V Bmiv7 → VII ×2

The move to watch is A → Bm, heard 14 times. From the D side it reads V → vi (deceptive cadence: expected D, lands on Bm); from the Bm side it is VII → i (Aeolian arrival: rises a whole tone into home). 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 A, land on A, C#, E — 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 Bm, land on B, D, F# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
On Fmaj7, follow the chord's notes (F · 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 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

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is D; the ear learns where home is within a second. The backbone is A, D, Bm, G — V–I–vi–IV from the D side, VII–III–i–VI from the Bm side. Fmaj7 briefly darkens the picture: borrowed from the parallel minor. Keep an ear on A → Bm (V → vi in D, VII → i in Bm): deceptive cadence — expected D, lands on Bm. It closes on D, letting the D 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.