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14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?The 100 most repeated chord transitions extracted from thousands of songs. Even the first 10 will transform your guitar practice routine.

Ariana Grande - Break Free Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsC, Am, G, Em, B7, D
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow.

CAmGC
IfyouEmwantit,Amtakeit,GIshouldhavesaiditCbefore
TriedtoEmhideit,Amfakeit,GIcan’tpretendCanymore
EmIonlywanttoAmdiealive,GneverbythehandsofaCbrokenheart
EmIdon’twannahearyouAmlietonight,GnowthatI’vebecomewhoIB7reallyam
CThisEmistheGpartwhenICsayIdon?twantit
I’mEmstrongerthanGI’vebeenCbefore
ThisEmistheDpartwhenICbreakfree
CauseAmIcan’tresistitnoCmore
ThisEmistheGpartwhenICsayIdon?twantit
I’mEmstrongerthanGI’vebeenCbefore
ThisEmistheDpartwhenICbreakfree
CauseAmIcan’tresistitnoCmoreB7C
YouwereEmbetter,Amdeeper,GIwasunderaCspell
LikeaEmdeadlyAmfearIam,babe,GonthehighwayCtohell
EmIonlywanttoAmdiealive,GneverbythehandsofaCbrokenheart
EmIdon’twannahearyouAmlietonight,GnowthatI’vebecomewhoIB7reallyam
CThisEmistheGpartwhenICsayIdon?twantit
I’mEmstrongerthanGI’vebeenCbefore
ThisEmistheDpartwhenICbreakfree
CauseAmIcan’tresistitnoCmore
ThisEmistheGpartwhenICsayIdon?twantit
I’mEmstrongerthanGI’vebeenCbefore
ThisEmistheDpartwhenICbreakfree
CauseAmIcan’tCresistitnoAmmore
C(OurloveEmbaby,Goooooh)DtheAmthoughtEmonyourbody
IDcameAmalive,itwasClethal,itwasEmfatal
InmyB7dreamsitfeltsoAmright
ButICwokeupand EmpretendDOhGbaby
ThisEmistheGpartwhenICsayIdon?twantit
I’mEmstrongerthanGI’vebeenCbefore
ThisEmistheDpartwhenICbreakfree
CauseAmIcan’tresistitnoCmore
ThisEmistheGpartwhenICsayIdon?twantit
I’mEmstrongerthanGI’vebeenCbefore
ThisEmistheDpartwhenICbreakfree
CauseAmIcan’tresistitnoCmore
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookDiscover the most-used three-chord combinations in songs and build real command on guitar.
14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?Master guitar today with the most repeated high-impact chord transitions.
ArtistAriana Grande
AlbumMy Everything
GenresPop
Year2014
KeyC
DifficultyIntermediate

How to play Break Free on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Ariana Grande - Break Free on guitar requires 6 chords and 14 core chord transitions. You can find the full step-by-step guide below. Before you start, tune your instrument. The song uses the ↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑ pattern; practice it muted first, or simplify to downstrokes while you learn the changes.

Break Free uses these transitions most often: C → Em (28), G → C (19), and Em → G (13). These transitions may feel a little challenging at first, but with steady practice you can play this song quickly.When you are ready, begin with C - Am chord transition.

1. C → Am chord transition

Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar Am chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-1-0Guitar Am chord diagram

Here's how to move from C to Am:

  1. Keep index finger on B string fret 1.
  2. Keep middle finger on D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

C to Am

2. Am → G chord transition

Guitar Am chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-1-0Guitar Am chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

To move from Am to G:

  1. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from G string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 9 times.

Am to G

3. G → C chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram

Here's how to move from G to C:

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 19 times.

G to C

4. C → Em chord transition

Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

To move from C to Em:

  1. While playing C, lift your index finger from B string fret 1.
  2. Lift your middle finger from D string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from A string fret 3 to D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 28 times.

C to Em

5. Em → Am chord transition

To move from Em to Am:

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 2.
  2. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to G string fret 2.
  3. Place index finger on B string fret 1.

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

6. G → B7 chord transition

Switching from G to B7:

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to A string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.
  4. Place pinky on E string fret 2.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 2 times.

7. B7 → C chord transition

To move from B7 to C:

  1. While playing B7, lift your pinky from E string fret 2.
  2. Lift your index finger from D string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from A string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
  4. Lift your ring finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 4 times.

8. Em → G chord transition

Switching from Em to G:

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 3.
  2. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 13 times.

9. Em → D chord transition

Switching from Em to D:

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 2.
  2. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to B string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 8 times.

10. D → C chord transition

Here's how to move from D to C:

  1. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 6 times.

11. G → D chord transition

To move from G to D:

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to E string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on B string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse.

12. D → Am chord transition

To move from D to Am:

  1. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

13. Em → B7 chord transition

Switching from Em to B7:

  1. Keep middle finger on A string fret 2.
  2. Lift your ring finger from D string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
  3. Place index finger on D string fret 1.
  4. Place pinky on E string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

14. B7 → Am chord transition

To move from B7 to Am:

  1. While playing B7, lift your pinky from E string fret 2.
  2. Lift your index finger from D string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from A string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
  4. Keep ring finger on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse.

Break Free chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Break Free.

  • Break Free includes 128 chord transitions, 14 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Break Free contains 6 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Break Free connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → G: 35%
    • C → Am: 10%
    After Em, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (26%), G (18%), and D (18%).
    • Em → G: 18%
    • Em → D: 18%
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookThe 200 most popular three-chord chains from real songs. See which songs use each chain and expand your repertoire with patterns that actually matter.