Piano chords · Rock drive
How to play We Are Young on piano
By fun.
- F major
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- 2011
- Medium
Learn We Are Young in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: F – Dm – Dm – Bb
We Are Young sits in F major: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F is F, A and C; Dm is D, F and A; Bb is Bb, D and F. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
FIDmviDmviBbIV- FF · A · C
- DmD · F · A
- BbBb · D · F
- 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: Pumping chords
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 120 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: Bb – C – F
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCF- CC · E · G
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Questions about We Are Young
What chords are in We Are Young?
The loop is F – Dm – Dm – Bb (I – vi – IV – I) in F major, and the song ends on Bb – C – F.
What key is We Are Young in?
F major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in We Are Young?
Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is We Are Young 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.
Can I hear the real melody of We Are Young?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.