The Subway

How to play The Subway by Chappell Roan on guitar

These are the sounding chords. With a capo on fret 3 you play G, Am, D, Em, C, the shapes the player above shows.

This song is a great beginner pick because it sits in a steady, upbeat groove around 120 BPM and gives you a clear pop progression to lock into. You get a catchy, forward-moving feel that is fun to strum and easy to recognize once the pattern settles in.

The main thing to notice is that F is the only open shape, while A#, Cm, Gm, and D# are barre shapes, so your fretting hand will do most of the work. The opening move from A# to Cm to F and back to A# is the change to watch closely, since it asks you to switch from barre chords into an open shape and back again without losing time.

Start by practicing the opening progression slowly and cleanly, making each chord ring before moving on. Then repeat just the A# to Cm to F change until it feels automatic, and only after that bring the full song up to tempo. Keep your strums even and relaxed, and the whole track will come together quickly.

Use the play-along above to follow each chord change in time with the music, or learn the shapes first with the chord diagrams below.