Most Popular Chord Progressions in Pop Music
The most popular chord progressions in pop music are surprisingly simple. Here are four of the most common progressions, with examples of songs that use them.
I–V–vi–IV
I–V–vi–IV is perhaps the most popular chord progression in contemporary pop music. It’s been used by everyone from Bruno Mars to Taylor Swift, and it sounds great with a variety of different genres and styles.
The I–V–vi–IV progression is deceptively simple, but it’s also extremely versatile. You can use it for slow, emotional ballads or upbeat, catchy pop songs. It’s a great option if you’re looking for a progression that will sound good with a variety of different instruments and voices.
This progression is built around the 1st, 5th, 6th, and 4th chords in any major key. In the key of C, that would be C, G, Am, and F. If you’re not familiar with Roman numerals, the I–V–vi–IV progression can also be written as C–G–Am–F.
One of the things that makes this progression so popular is its familiarity. The 1st, 5th, and 6th chords are all major chords, which gives the progression a bright sound. The 4th chord is a minor chord, which provides contrast and helps to create tension and release. This contrast is what makes the I–V–vi–IV progression so satisfying to listen to.
The I–V–vi–IV progression can be used in a variety of different ways. You can play it as-is, or you can add seventh chords or other embellishments to create different soundscapes. You can also change the order of the chords or alter the rhythm to create new variations on this classic progression.
I–V–vi–iii–IV–I–IV–V
The I–V–vi–iii–IV–I–IV–V progression is one of the most popular chord progressions in pop music. It’s used in countless songs, from The Beatles’ “Let It Be” to Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off.”
This chord progression gets its name from the Roman numerals that are used to identify each chord: I (one), V (five), vi (six), iii (three), IV (four), I (one), IV (four), V (five).
The I–V–vi–iii–IV–I–IV–V progression is a major key progression, which means it uses chords that are all built on major scale notes. In the key of C, for example, the chords would be C major, G major, A minor, D minor, F major, C major, F major, and G major.
ii–V–I
ii–V–I is one of the most popular chord progressions in all of music, regardless of genre. It’s used in countless songs, from The Beatles’ “Yesterday” to Katy Perry’s “Firework.”
The ii–V–I progression is so common because it’s extremely versatile. It can be used to express a wide range of emotions, from happiness and optimism (as in “Yesterday”) to yearning and longing (as in “Firework”).
This versatility is due to the fact that the ii–V–I progression contains several different harmonic functions. The ii chord is a minor chord, which tends to create a feeling of tension or yearning. The V chord is a major chord, which creates a feeling of resolution or satisfaction. And the I chord is a tonic chord, which provides a sense of stability or resolution.
All of these different harmonic functions come together to create a ii–V–I progression that sounds both stable and energetic, happy and sad, resolved and unresolved. That’s why it’s such a popular choice for songwriters across all genres!
I–vi–ii–V–I
I–vi–ii–V–I is a five-part chord progression popular in Western classical, popular and traditional music, with the chords being based on the tonic (I), supertonic (ii), mediant (iii), dominant (V) and submediant (vi) scale degrees. The symbols “i” and “V” are lowercase Roman numerals representing minor and major chords while “ii”, “iii”, and “vi” represent diminished, minor and major chords respectively.
I–vi–IV–V
The I–vi–IV–V progression is a four-chord progression popular in Western popular music. The chord progression has a wide range of applications, including as a school Girls’ Generation’s “Into the New World”, Katy Perry’s “Firework”, The Beach Boys’ “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”, Bruno Mars’ “Just the Way You Are” as well as blues (“Sweet Home Chicago”) and rock songs such as Bob Dylan’s “Tangled Up in Blue” and Radiohead’s “No Surprises”.
The progression, represented in Roman numerals, is:
I–vi–IV–V = 1–6–4–5
I–V–vi–iii–VII–iii–VI–ii–V–I
The I–V–vi–iii–VII–iii–VI–ii–V–I progression is a chord progression popularised by jazz musicians, though it appears in pop music. The progression consists of the chords I, V, vi, iii, VII, iii, VI, ii, V and I.
