Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Can't Back Down on piano
By Demi Lovato
- F minor
- 4/4
- 115 BPM
- 2010
- Medium
Learn Can't Back Down in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: F – Ab – Eb – Db
Can't Back Down sits in F minor: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F is F, A and C; Ab is Ab, C and Eb; Eb is Eb, G and Bb; Db is Db, F and Ab. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
FIAbIIIEbVIIDbVI- FF · A · C
- AbAb · C · Eb
- EbEb · G · Bb
- DbDb · F · Ab
- 2
Left hand: Hiccup heartbeat
A tiny hiccup just before beat 3, then a push on the “and”. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 2 · 2a · 3& · 4 (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in 121 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Firefly blink
The top note and the one below blink back and forth like a firefly. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 115 BPM
Put the two hands together over the loop. Start at half speed with the player's speed control, and bring it up once every change is easy.
- 5
Ending: Db – Eb – Fm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DbEbFm- FmF · Ab · C
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Questions about Can't Back Down
What chords are in Can't Back Down?
The loop is F – Ab – Eb – Db (I5 – bIII5 – bVII5 – bVI5) in F minor, and the song ends on Db – Eb – Fm.
What key is Can't Back Down in?
F minor, at about 115 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Can't Back Down?
Hiccup heartbeat: root bass · 1 · 2 · 2a · 3& · 4, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Can't Back Down easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.