Major view
A major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = G# (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = D (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Bruno Mars - I Want To Be a Billionaire - Chord
Key A major – F# minor Chords Gbm, E, D, A, Db, Bm, Abm Easy key C
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Key: A | Gbm | F#m
Capo: 0
A Db
I wanna be a billionaire so fricking bad
Gbm E
Buy all of the things I never had
A Db
Uh, I wanna be on the cover of Forbes magazine
Gbm E
Smiling next to Oprah and the Queen
D E Gbm
Oh every time I close my eyes
D E Gbm
I see my name in shining lights
D E A Abm
A different city every night oh
Gbm E D Db
I I swear the world better prepare
For when I'm a billionaire
A
Yeah I would have a show like Oprah
Db
I would be the host of everyday Christmas
Give Travie a wish list
Gbm
I'd probably pull an Angelina and Brad Pitt
E
And adopt a bunch of babies that ain't never had sh t
Give away a few Mercedes like here lady have this
And last but not least grant somebody their last wish
Its been a couple months since I've single so
You can call me Travie Claus minus the Ho Ho
Get it, hehe, I'd probably visit where Katrina hit
And damn sure do a lot more than FEMA did
Yeah can't forget about me stupid
Everywhere I go Imma have my own theme music
D E Gbm
Oh every time I close my eyes
D E Gbm
I see my name in shining lights
D E A Abm
A different city every night oh
Gbm E D Db
I I swear the world better prepare
Gbm
For when I'm a billionaire
Gbm Bm
ohoh ohoh for when I'm a billionaire
Gbm Bm
ohoh ohoh for when I'm a billionaire
A
I'll be playing basketball with the president.
Dunking on his delegates.
Db
Then I compliment on his political etiquette.
Gbm
Toss a couple milli in the air just for the heck of it
E
But keep the fives, twentys, tens, and bens completely separate
And yeah I'll be in a whole new tax bracket
We in recession but let me take a crack at it
I'll probably take whatevers left and just split it up
So everybody that I love can have a couple bucks
And not a single tummy around me would know what hungry was
Eating good sleeping soundly
I know we all have a similar dream
Go in your pocket pull out your wallet
And put it in the air and sing
A Db
I wanna be a billionaire so fricking bad
Gbm E
Buy all of the things I never had
A Db
Uh, I wanna be on the cover of Forbes magazine
Gbm E
Smiling next to Oprah and the Queen
D E Gbm
Oh every time I close my eyes
D E Gbm
I see my name in shining lights
D E A Abm
A different city every night oh
Gbm E D Db
I I swear the world better prepare
Gbm
For when I'm a billionaire
Gbm Bm
ohoh ohoh for when I'm a billionaire
Gbm Bm
ohoh ohoh for when I'm a billionaire
A
I wanna be a billionaire
Db
so frickin bad
End of song Play again?
Bruno Mars - I Want To Be a Billionaire Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Bruno Mars – I Want To Be a Billionaire: key and chord analysis
The song opens on A and ends on Db. Its chords belong to both A major and F#m, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
F# minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = D (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = E (natural-minor colour)
- #7 = E# (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the F# minor side because it opens on A, F#m is heard 21 times against 10 for A and the major V chord points straight at F#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from A 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 A or to F#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 | A | Tonic — home | A · C# · E | 10× |
| ii | Bm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | B · D · F# | 4× |
| iii | C#m | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | C# · E · G# | — |
| V/vi | Db | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Gbmsecondary dominant | Db · F · Ab | 10× |
| IV | D | Subdominant — moves away from home | D · F# · A | 12× |
| V | E | Dominant — strongest pull home | E · G# · B | 18× |
| vi | Gbm | Relative minor — the melancholy side | Gb · A · Db | 21× |
| vii° | G#dim | Leading-tone chord — tension | G# · B · D | — |
| vii | Abm | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | Ab · Cb · Eb | 3× |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Gbm | Tonic — home | Gb · A · Db | 21× |
| ii° | G#dim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | G# · B · D | — |
| ii | Abm | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | Ab · Cb · Eb | 3× |
| III | A | Relative major — the bright side | A · C# · E | 10× |
| iv | Bm | Subdominant — moves away from home | B · D · F# | 4× |
| v | C#m | Minor dominant — soft pull | C# · E · G# | — |
| V | Db | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | Db · F · Ab | 10× |
| VI | D | Submediant — warm colour | D · F# · A | 12× |
| VII | E | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | E · G# · B | 18× |
Analysis
The key pair is A major and its relative F# minor (3 sharps). 7 different chords appear 78 times in total; 5 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of F#m brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from A, the same Db is V/vi, a secondary dominant heading for F#m. Abm step outside the scale as colour chords.
Chord movement
- D E AIV → VIV → V F#mVI → VIIVI → VII ×9
- Db Gbm AV/vi → vi F#mV → iharmonic-minor cadence ×8
- E A AV → Iauthentic cadence F#mVII → III ×6
- E Gbm AV → videceptive cadence F#mVII → iAeolian arrival ×6
- Bm Gbm Aii → vi F#miv → iminor plagal ×2
The move to watch is D → E, heard 9 times. From the F#m side it is VI → VII (VI → VII: the rising step that heads for the tonic); from the A side it reads IV → V (IV → V: the lift that builds tension before home). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Improvisation tips
- A major pentatonic and F# minor pentatonic are the same five notes (A – B – C# – E – F#): start from A for a brighter phrase, from F# for a bluesier one.
- Over Gbm, land on Gb, A, Db — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over E, land on E, G#, B — 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.
- When Db comes, swap the scale's E for E#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.
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 A major shapes
- No capo — open A shapes
- Capo 2 + G shapes
- Capo 5 + E shapes
With F# minor shapes
- Capo 2 + Em shapes
- Capo 4 + Dm shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
- 3 semitones up
- 2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch
The song's harmonic story
Starting on A, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. Gbm, E, D, A carry the song: vi–V–IV–I relative to A, i–VII–VI–III relative to F#m. Db is the interesting twist: in A it is a chromatic chord (V/vi), while in F#m it becomes the dominant (V) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on D → E (IV → V in A, VI → VII in F#m): VI → VII — the rising step that heads for the tonic. Ending on Db, the song seals A 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.
Bruno Mars - I Want To Be a Billionaire Chords on Guitar, Ukulele and Piano
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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