Fred Hammond: the Detroit bassist who brought praise and worship to urban gospel

He started as the bass player. In the early 1980s, Fred Hammond played bass for the Winans, the Detroit family that helped modernise gospel music. Within a few years, he was a founding member of the group Commissioned, and later he became one of the most influential figures in urban gospel.

Detroit and Commissioned

Hammond grew up in Detroit, a city with a rich gospel and soul tradition. He began singing in his church choir as a boy and learned to play bass. Commissioned, formed in the 1980s, became one of the leading contemporary gospel groups of its era. Its smooth harmonies and R&B-influenced sound attracted young listeners. Hammond was part of most of the group’s albums before launching his solo career in 1991.

Solo career

His early solo albums included I Am Persuaded and Deliverance. He wrote, produced and sang, developing a sound that combined gospel with funk, R&B and hip-hop influences.

In the mid-1990s, Hammond formed the choir Radical for Christ. Their album Pages of Life: Chapters I and II became one of the best-selling gospel albums of the late 1990s and won Dove Awards. Songs such as “Let the Praise Begin” became church anthems.

Praise and worship

Hammond helped bring praise and worship songs, long, congregational songs focused on adoration, into the urban gospel mainstream. His live recordings captured churches singing with him. His album Free to Worship earned Grammy recognition, adding to Dove and Stellar awards across his career. Hammond produced albums for other gospel artists and was known for his skill in arranging vocals and bands.

Many Ghanaian and Nigerian church bands learned their craft playing Fred Hammond songs. His bass lines and vocal arrangements are studied by church musicians, and songs like “No Weapon” are sung in services and prayer meetings.

Legacy

Hammond showed that gospel could be both worshipful and musically sophisticated. Many later worship leaders followed his blend of praise and contemporary sound. Detroit has produced many of gospel’s biggest names, including the Winans family, the Clark Sisters and Marvin Sapp, who sang with Commissioned. The city’s churches, choirs and musicians formed a network that trained Hammond and many others. That tradition helped make Detroit one of the most important cities in modern gospel music.

Many church bassists dream of moving from the back of the stage to the front. Fred Hammond did, and he brought the groove with him.