It could be analyzed that the bassline is heard in e minor while the melody remains in E major, creating a polymodal situation for a few more measures. The bassline is in conflict with the key of E major, featuring plenty of non-diatonic tones throughout. The melody remains unchanged, but the harmony is totally different. This is where other scholars have debated as to what is happening here. A chordal analysis could be constructed mostly from the notes of the melody, but we don’t hear any notable harmonic changes until the second repetition of the chorus (heard at :51 in the video recording above), where a bassline definitively enters. The song “Single Ladies” is in in E major, remaining on the tonic E chord during almost the entire first minute of the song. But a definitive idea of this song’s modulation has escaped me for so long that I’m going to dive into it further than I do with other songs.

Even the most advanced AP Theory course will probably not cover half-diminished chords in a pop song, so I don’t usually go that far into an analysis. That’s the point - I’m writing for an intended audience of K-12 teachers. As of 2015, the album has sold eight million copies worldwide and as of 2017, it has generated over one billion streams.Īnalysis: A lot of songs I write about on this blog have a fairly basic surface level analysis attached. It was released on the album I Am…Sasha Fierce in 2008, which debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Album charts. The song & video won multiple awards, from MTV’s Video of the Year for 2009 to the Grammy for Song of the Year at the 2010 ceremony. It also topped the charts in Brazil, and strangely enough, remained on singles charts across the world (from Europe to South Korea to Australia) for five years after its release in late 2008. “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” was Beyoncé’s fifth solo single to top the Hot 100 charts. She was named by the RIAA as the top certified selling artist of the 00s. She has sold over 100 million albums and has set chart records left & right, including the only female solo artist whose first six solo albums have debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts. Carter has won 24 Grammys and been nominated more than any other woman in the history of the awards. A cultural tour de force and the highest paid Black entertainer in history, Beyoncé will be remembered as one of the hallmark entertainers of her generation. Introduction: Beyoncé needs very little introduction.

Some have postulated that it’s a flattened submediant modulation. It could be referred to as a major to minor modulation. Overview: At the bridge (starting at 2:01), “Single Ladies” modulates.

Beyonce single ladies year