Bieber Plays My Favorite Gospel Chord! Learn it here:

Okay, okay… It’s not likely Biebs is playing the piano on his track, Holy. But the chord that hits at 1:05 is one of my favs.

It’s a C#13sus aka BMaj7/C#, and it functions as a dramatic V7 dominant chord.

The easiest way to voice it on the piano is by playing a C# in your left hand and B - D# - F# - A# in your right.

And for those of you who prefer to use all white keys, here’s the same voicing spelled out as a G13sus:

G in your left and F - A - C - E in your right.

You can also simplify the voicing by ditching the 13 and playing B/C# (or F/G).

I recently heard Joey Dosik of Vulfpeck refer to this voicing as a “C# Classic,” and it certainly has that classic, soulful sound.

But the first time I discovered it was in high school when I transcribed the Saturday Night Live closing theme. You can hear it at around 4 seconds in.

Of course, this chord has been around long before Bieber, Vulfpeck, and SNL. Soul greats like James Booker, Donny Hathaway, Billy Preston, and Stevie Wonder use it again and again, and it never gets old. (It’s no wonder Dosik calls it The Classic!)

So, go learn this V13sus chord in a few keys (or more) and jam out!

While you’re at it, grab a copy of Sick Chords Volume 1, which contains over 100 of my favorite jazz, R&B, and neo-soul voicings for Major 7, Minor 7, and Dominant 7 chord types, which you can implement in any key.

You can learn all about it right here:

https://go.jeffschneidermusic.com/sick-chords-volume-1

Happy shedding!

Jeff