Preaching chords are blues/gospel-inspired chords played on a Hammond organ or piano, and many times with a drum set as well, near the end of a pastor or minister's sermon to accentuate, emphasize, and respond to them in a musical way.
The exact origin of preaching chords being played in African American Baptist and Pentecostal churches is relatively unknown, but is mostly believed to have started in either the early or mid-20th Century, at a time when many African-American clergymen and pastors began preaching in a charismatic, musical call-and-response style.
On October 20, 2010, CNN featured Baptist megachurch pastor E. Dewey Smith, Jr., where he talked about this type of call-and-response preaching that he incorporates into his sermons and referred to it as "hooping," giving an explanation of its cultural significance to African-American Christianity and gospel music, saying, "Hooping is delivering and celebrating the Gospel message of Jesus Christ in an exuberant, musical style with a call-and-response type of synergy...it's almost like an improvisation of Jazz music meeting Gospel music with a little bit of Blues and Soul.
"[8] Today, preaching chords have become a staple part of Baptist and Pentecostal musical worship, particularly in the Black Church tradition.
[9] They have also become a staple part of Traditional black gospel music and urban contemporary gospel music in the United States, and even in other countries as well where Black Gospel music and culture is prevalent among Black Christians, such as in different countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in Europe.