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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.

Rihanna - Stay Chords

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

Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow. Using the Transpose tool, switch to G key to play this song with easier chords.

CDmAmDmAmDmAmDm
CAllalongitwasaDmfever
CAcoldwithhighheaded Dmbelievers
CIthrewmyhandsintheDmairIAmsaidshowmesomething
GHesaid,ifyoudarecome Dmalittle Amcloser
FRoundandaroundand DmaroundandaroundweAmgo
OhhhFnowtellmenowtellmeAmnowtellmenowyouAmknow
CNotreallysurehowtoDmfeelaboutit
AmSomethinginthewayyouFmove
CMakesmefeellikeIcan’tDmlivewithoutyou
AmIttakesmealltheFway
IwantyoutoCstayDmAmF
CIt’snotmuchofaDmlifeyou’reAmliving
It’sCnotjustsomethingyouDmtake,it’sAmgiven
FRoundandaroundand DmaroundandaroundweAmgo
OhhhFnowtellmenowtellmeDmnowtellmenowyouAmknow
DmOhhhAmthereasonICholdFon
DmOhhhAmcauseIneedthisCholeFgone
DmFunnyallthebrokenonesbutAmI’mtheonlyonewhoneededFsaving
CauseDmwhenyouneverseethelights
It’sAmhardtoknowwhichoneofusisFcaving
CNotreallysurehowtoDmfeelaboutit
AmSomethinginthewayyouFmove
CMakesmefeellikeIcan’tDmlivewithoutyou
AmIttakesmealltheFway
IwantyoutoCstayDmAmF
StayDmIAmwantFyoutoCstayDmoh,Amohhh
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.
ArtistRihanna
AlbumUnapologetic
GenresPop, R&B, Soul
Year2012
KeyC
DifficultyIntermediate

How to play Stay on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Rihanna - Stay on guitar requires 5 chords and 8 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.

Stay uses these transitions most often: Dm → Am (24), Am → F (13), and C → Dm (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 - Dm chord transition.

1. C → Dm chord transition

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

To move from C to Dm:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 13 times.

C to Dm

2. Dm → Am chord transition

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

Switching from Dm to Am:

  1. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from G 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 24 times.

Dm to Am

3. Am → C chord transition

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

To move from Am to C:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

Am to C

4. 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

Switching 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.

Am to G

5. G → Dm chord transition

Switching from G to Dm:

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

6. Am → F chord transition

To move from Am to F:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 13 times.

7. F → Dm chord transition

To move from F to Dm:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 7 times.

8. F → C chord transition

Here's how to move from F to C:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 7 times.

Stay chord transition analysis

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

  • Stay includes 80 chord transitions, 8 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Stay contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Stay connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After Am, the most likely next chords across Chordier are F (26%), G (21%), and C (16%).
    • Am → F: 26%
    • Am → G: 21%
    After Dm, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (18%), G (16%), and Am (14%).
    • Dm → C: 18%
    • Dm → Am: 14%
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.