Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play I Don’t Have To Be Me on piano
Written by Dan H. Shipley, Jason Young & others
- Ab major
- 4/4
- 100 BPM
- I–V–vi–IV loop
- 1998
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn I Don’t Have To Be Me in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Ab – Eb – Fm – Db
How it goes
I Don’t Have To Be Me sits in Ab major: Ab is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Ab is Ab, C and Eb; Eb is Eb, G and Bb; Fm is F, Ab and C; Db is Db, F and Ab. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
AbIEbVFmviDbIV- AbAb · C · Eb
- EbEb · G · Bb
- FmF · Ab · C
- DbDb · F · Ab
- 2
Left hand: Tick-tick-boom pulse
How it goes
Two quick low notes and a high one, twice: ta-ta-DUM, ta-ta-DUM. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4 (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 479 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Swing push
How it goes
Three chords tumble out early with a swing, then the bar breathes. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 100 BPM
How it goes
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 – Ab
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DbEbAb
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Questions about I Don’t Have To Be Me
What chords are in I Don’t Have To Be Me?
The loop is Ab – Eb – Fm – Db (I – V – vi – IV) in Ab major, and the song ends on Db – Eb – Ab.
What key is I Don’t Have To Be Me in?
Ab major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in I Don’t Have To Be Me?
Tick-tick-boom pulse: root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is I Don’t Have To Be Me 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.