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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 - Russian Roulette Chords

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

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

EmUh,Uh
TakeaEmbreath,takeitCdeep
CalmAmyourself,hesaystoB7me
IfyouEmplay,youplayforCkeeps
TaketheAmgun,andcounttoB7three
I’msweatingEmnow,movingCslow
NotimetoAmthink,myturntoB7go
AndyoucanseemyEmheartCbeating
DYoucanseeitthroughmyAmchest
SaidI’mEmterrified.butI’mnotCleaving
IDknowthatImustmustpassthisAmtest
B7SojustpulltheEmtrigger
SayaEmprayer,toCyourself
HesayscloseyourAmeyes,sometimesitB7helps
AndthenIEmget,ascaryCthought
Thathe’sAmhere,meanshe’sneverB7lost
AndyoucanseemyEmheartCbeating
DYoucanseeitthroughmyAmchest
SaidI’mEmterrified,butI’mnotCleaving
IDknowthatImustmustpassthisAmtest
B7SojustpulltheCtrigger
AsmylifeGflashesbeforemyeyes
I’mAmwonderingwillIeverEmseeanotherDsunrise?
CSomanywon’tgettheAchancetosaygoodbye
Butit’sDtoolatetoopickupthevalueofmyD#life
AndyoucanseemyEmheartCbeating
DYoucanseeitthroughmyAmchest
SaidI’mEmterrified,butI’mnotCleaving
IDknowthatImustmustpassthisAmtest
AndyoucanseemyEmheartCbeating
DYoucanseeitthroughmyAmchest
SaidI’mEmterrified,butI’mnotCleaving
IDknowthatImustmustpassthisAmtest
B7SojustpulltheEmtrigger
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
AlbumRated R
GenresPop
Year2009
KeyEm
DifficultyIntermediate

How to play Russian Roulette on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Rihanna - Russian Roulette on guitar requires 8 chords and 15 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.

Russian Roulette uses these transitions most often: Em → C (13), Am → B7 (8), and C → D (8). 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 Em - C chord transition.

1. Em → C chord transition

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

To move from Em to C:

  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 A string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on B string fret 1.

This transition appears in the verse, played 13 times.

Em to C

2. 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 5 times.

C to Am

3. Am → B7 chord transition

Guitar Am chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-1-0Guitar Am chord diagram
Guitar B7 chord diagram Fingering: x-2-1-2-0-2Guitar B7 chord diagram

Here's how to move from Am to B7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

Am to B7

4. B7 → Em chord transition

Guitar B7 chord diagram Fingering: x-2-1-2-0-2Guitar B7 chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

To move from B7 to Em:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 7 times.

B7 to Em

5. C → D chord transition

Here's how to move from C to D:

  1. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on G string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to E 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 chorus, played 8 times.

6. 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 chorus, played 8 times.

7. Am → Em chord transition

Here's how to move from Am to Em:

  1. While playing Am, 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 G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 6 times.

8. 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.

9. C → G chord transition

Here's how to move from C 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 A string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse.

10. G → Am chord transition

To move from G to Am:

  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 G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse.

11. 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 verse.

12. C → A chord transition

Here's how to move from C to A:

  1. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on D string fret 2.
  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 2.

This transition appears in the verse.

13. A → D chord transition

To move from A to D:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

14. D → D# chord transition

Switching from D to D#:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

15. D# → Em chord transition

To move from D# to Em:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

Russian Roulette chord transition analysis

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

  • Russian Roulette includes 64 chord transitions, 15 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Russian Roulette contains 6 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Russian Roulette connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After Em, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (26%), G (18%), and D (18%).
    • Em → C: 26%
    • Em → D: 18%
    After C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → G: 35%
    • C → D: 11%
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.