A Chord Progression to Brighten the Mood

Here’s an easy way to make 2 key changes as you move from verse to chorus.

It’s a very common technique for songwriters to move from minor to major as they move from verse to chorus. A classic example is Carole King’s “You’ve Got a Friend“, the verse for which is in F minor, switching to the relative major, Ab, in the chorus.

That goes hand-in-hand with the mood of the song. The verse lyric starts “When you’re down and troubled/ and you need some loving’ care…“, and the minor key suits it well.

The switch to major in the chorus supports the brightening of the mood of the lyric: “You just call out my name/ and you know wherever I am/ I’ll come running…”

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There’s another key changing trick you can try, which is to switch from minor to major while still in the verse, and then move that major key even higher, to a new one, in the chorus. That means that the song goes through a total of 3 different keys. Here’s what that would look like:

The key of C minor cloaks your music in a darker, broody mood. The key of Eb major is the relative major, which means that it uses the same key signature as C minor. Moving from minor to relative major, for that reason, is usually an easy transition. Then the switch to F major for the chorus has the effect of lightening the mood all the more, and it can do a great job of supporting lyrics that start gloomy and get cheerier as they go.

For this C minor-to-Eb major-to-F major key plan, here are 3 chord progressions that would fit the bill:

1. Verse: Cm  Bb  Ab  Fm | Cm  Bb  Ab  Fm | Eb  Ab  Bb  Cm  | Eb  Ab  Csus  C  | Chorus: F  Bb  Gm  C…
2. Verse: Cm  Fm  Cm  G  | Cm  Fm  Ab  Bb  | Eb  Bb/D  Cm  Ab  | Eb  Fm  Ab Bb  | Chorus: F  C  Dm  Bb…
3. Verse: Cm  Gm  Fm  Bb  | Cm  Gm  Fm  Bb  | Eb  Gm  Cm  Ab  | Eb  Fm  Bb  C  | Chorus: F  Dm  Bb  C

As you can see, the only tricky part is getting the key of Eb major to transition properly to F major. Whatever you wind up doing, just be sure that the last chord of your verse is one that moves smoothly on to F major.

The best use of this kind of double-brightening technique is to put your verse in the minor key, use the relative major for your pre-chorus, and then the next major key change for the chorus.

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Written by Gary Ewer. Follow on Twitter. “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” eBook Bundle looks at songwriting from every angle, and has been used by thousands of songwriters. How to use chords, write melodies, and craft winning lyrics.  (And you’ll receive a FREE copy of “Hooks and Riffs: How They Grab Attention, Make Songs Memorable, and Build Your Fan Base”)