Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Stay Down on piano
Written by Mary J. Blige, Johnta Austin & others
- F# minor
- 2/2
- 116 BPM
- 2007
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn Stay Down in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: F#m – D – E – C#m
How it goes
Stay Down sits in F# minor: F# is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F#m is F#, A and C#; D is D, F# and A; E is E, G# and B; C#m is C#, E and G#. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
F#miDVIEVIIC#mv- F#mF# · A · C#
- DD · F# · A
- EE · G# · B
- C#mC# · E · G#
- 2
Left hand: Pausing footsteps
How it goes
Three even steps, then a quiet beat to breathe. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Pumping chords
How it goes
A chord on every eighth note, driving the song forward. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 116 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: D – E – F#m
How it goes
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DEF#m
Play next
Questions about Stay Down
What chords are in Stay Down?
The loop is F#m – D – E – C#m (i – bVI – bVII – v) in F# minor, and the song ends on D – E – F#m.
What key is Stay Down in?
F# minor, at about 116 beats a minute in 2/2.
What does the left hand play in Stay Down?
Pausing footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 3, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Stay 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.