Piano chords · Rock drive
How to play Hot Stuff on piano
By Donna Summer
- G minor
- 4/4
- 132 BPM
- 1979
- Medium
Learn Hot Stuff in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Gm – Cm – D – Gm
Hot Stuff sits in G minor: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Gm is G, Bb and D; Cm is C, Eb and G; D is D, F# and A. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
GmiCmivDVGmi- GmG · Bb · D
- CmC · Eb · G
- DD · F# · A
- 2
Left hand: Engine 8ths
The lowest note on every eighth: the engine of rock. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Offbeat skank
Chords only on the “and”: reggae and swing. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 132 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: Eb – F – Gm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
EbFGm- EbEb · G · Bb
- FF · A · C
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Questions about Hot Stuff
What chords are in Hot Stuff?
The loop is Gm – Cm – D – Gm (i – iv – V – i) in G minor, and the song ends on Eb – F – Gm.
What key is Hot Stuff in?
G minor, at about 132 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Hot Stuff?
Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Hot Stuff 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.