Hezekiah Walker: the Brooklyn choir leader behind “Every Praise”

The song uses only a few lines and repeats them, building with each round. When Hezekiah Walker released “Every Praise” in 2013, it spread rapidly from American churches to congregations around the world. Few gospel songs of the 2010s were sung more often.

Early life and the Love Fellowship Choir

Hezekiah Walker was born in 1962 and grew up in the Fort Greene area of Brooklyn, New York. He sang in church from childhood and showed early talent for leading choirs. In the 1980s, Walker formed the Love Fellowship Crusade Choir, later known as the Love Fellowship Choir. The choir became one of the best-known gospel choirs in the United States, recording a series of live albums.

Grammys and Every Praise

Walker and the choir won Grammy awards in the 1990s and 2000s for albums including Live in Atlanta at Morehouse College and Love Is Live!.

Walker founded Love Fellowship Tabernacle in Brooklyn, where he serves as pastor. The church has grown to several locations. “Every Praise”, from the album Azusa: The Next Generation, is a short, repeated declaration that all praise belongs to God. Its simplicity made it easy for congregations to learn, and it reached number one on the Billboard gospel airplay chart.

Other songs and influence abroad

Walker’s other well-known songs include “Souled Out” and “I Need You to Survive”, a song about believers needing one another that became popular at church gatherings. Walker belongs to a long tradition of American choir directors, from James Cleveland to Kirk Franklin, who built mass choirs into a powerful form of gospel music. “Every Praise” became especially popular in African churches. Choirs in Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa perform it at services and concerts, often adding local rhythms.

Mentoring and the church family

Walker has mentored younger gospel artists and choir members, many of whom have gone on to their own careers. Most of Walker’s albums were recorded live in churches or concert halls, capturing the energy of congregations singing along. That approach helped churches learn the songs quickly. Walker was later consecrated a bishop and oversees a network of churches.

Walker often speaks about community. Many gospel songs rely on long verses. “Every Praise” proved that a few repeated words, sung by a full church, can carry a whole service.