Fred Hammond is a very respectable American gospel singer, whose main field of work was in contemporary inspirational Christian gospel music. He is not only a singer but he is also a skilled musician who loves to play his bass guitar.
Fred has built a notable solo career and has shown his abilities also through his membership in a gospel group Commissioned.
He has also built an impressive solo career which gained him a net worth in the amount of half a million dollars.
Early years
He was born on December 27, 1960, in San Antonio, a big town in the state of Texas, in the United States. He was given his birth name Frederick William Hammond but was later mostly called Fred.
He grew up alongside his two brothers and raised by his mother Mildred Hammond whom he respects very much.
His mother Mildred was a true Christian and worshiped God by all her being. She took her sons, Fred, Ray and Dave to church regularly and the children were raised in a Christian manner.
That is why Fred is a devout Christian because he grew up very connected to church and God.
Fred loved music and singing from an early age and he soon wanted to learn to play some instruments.
He started with drums and made his way up to bass and even piano. He loved to play his bass guitar more than any other instrument so he focused on it as much as he could.
Fred graduated from high school but decided to join the U.S. Army and not go to college. He and his good friend named Mitchell Jones enlisted and served their Army time.
Career development
After he returned from the Army he went on an audition for a known gospel group called The Winans. This contemporary gospel group has received numerous Soul Train awards and Fred was honored to be received in the group.
The Army helped him understand the necessity of God’s word and their power, especially through songs.
He became one of their members and spent two years touring with them. It was in the period from 1980 until 1982.
Fred had an idea to form his own gospel group after he came back from the tour with The Winans.
He gathered his good friends, including Mitchell Jones with whom he served and created a gospel group under the name „Commissioned“.
The group decided that the best way to spread the word about themselves and to raise money for their debut album was to travel all around the United States and perform at various events.
It was also a good way to gather a fan base and became known everywhere in the country.
They signed a contract with „Light Records“ and released their debut album in 1985. It was titled „I’m Going Out“. It went high on the US Billboard gospel albums chart on No.11.
In 1986, Light Records has released their second album titled „Go Tell Somebody“ under the production leadership of Alan V. Abrahams. This album went to No.2. on the Billboard Gospel Chart.
Next year „Commissioned“ released an album titled „On the Winning Side“ again produced by Alan V.Abrahams. Their next two albums „Will You Be Ready?“ and „Ordinary Just Won’t Do“ were also released by Light Records in 1987 and 1989.
In 1998 Fred and Radical for Christ created a song titled „Power“ which was used on the soundtrack o fan animated movie „The Prince of Egypt“.
„State of Mind“ was released in 1990, but this time by Verity Records and it was one of the two last albums with all the original members performing in the group.
The next album group released was „Number 7“ and it was released through Benson Records in 1991. The album was produced by Fred Hammond himself and his good friend Mitchell Jones.
The last album was released in 1994 and was titled „Matters of the Heart“. After this album, Fred Hammond left the group.
He continued singing and producing music through his work with the „Radical for Christ“ group. He has built his own solo career at the same time.
He has released several gospel albums with the group. „The Spirit of David“ from 1996 went Gold and „Pages of Life“ from 1998 was a certified platinum twice.
His last album with „Radical for Christ“ was released through Verity Records. He returned to his old group „Commissioned“ with their album „The Commissioned Reunion Live“ in 2002 through Verity Records.
In 2001, Fred founded his own record label and he named it „Hammond Family Music“. He released several albums through his label.
The first one was „In Case You Missed It“ and the second one was „Christmas… Just Remember“ which was his solo album.
He has received many music awards for his work. In 2001 he has gained several Stellar Awards as the producer of the Year, Male Vocalist of The Year and more.
In 2008 he proudly received a Grammy Award for his album „Free To Worship“ in the category of Best Contemporary R&B gospel album.
In 2002 he released his 6th album called „Speak Those Thing: Pages of Life“. This album was his first solo album without any group. He went on the same-named tour in 2003.
In 2003/04 he released two albums „Hooked on the Hits“ and „Somethin ‘Bout Love“.
In 2006 he started working on an album with Commissioned which resulted in their new album „Praise & Worship“. Fred was the producer of a gospel ballad titled „Make Me Like the Moon“.
He also released his solo album in October 2006 called „Free to Worship“. This album was nominated for a Dove Award in the category of the Best Contemporary Gospel Album.
In 2009 he released a new album „Love Unstoppable“ which gained him a Dove Award in the category of Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year.
The album made it to No.1 on Billboard Contemporary Gospel Chart and it stayed on the chart for over a year.
In 2012 and 2013 he released „God, Love & Romance“ and „United Tenors“ through Verity Records.
United Tenors is the name of his new group which consists of two R&B singers Eric Robertson and Dave Hollister and two gospel singers which are named Fred Hammond and Brian Courtney Wilson.
He has received an NAACP Image Award for the “God, Love & Romance”.
His next album was released through RCA Records in 2014. The same label released his next album „Worship Journal Live“ while Face To Face Productions released „Uncle Fred – Texture of a Man“ which was released as a Collectors Edition.
The Texture album was very recommended by most critics due to its interesting style mixing.
“If We Ever Needed The Lord” has a touch of hip-hop in it while for example “I Know Lord Will Make A Way” has a small Latin influence.
He is extremely emotional in the song “I’ll Always Love My Mamma” because his mother was his big supporter.
In 2019 he made was involved in a huge controversy when it was found out that he started working with Snoop Dog on his first single album.
He even stated that some of the people from gis choir left him because they consider that what he is doing is a sin.
He was featured on Snoop’s gospel album “Bible of Love” on the song named “Call Him”.
He says that he understands that people are shocked because a gangsta rap artist has released a gospel album but he believes that everyone deserves a chance to change their path, getting closer to God.
Personal life
Fred married Kim in 1986 and the pair have a daughter named Bree Ann. They also adopted a boy named Darius who is nicknamed Bubba. He loves them very much and they appeared on his 2008 album.
He divorced his wife Kim in 2004. It seems that she has accused him of infidelity during their marriage but Fred denied all the similar charges.
He says that they grew apart and that his wife wasn’t ready to go on with their life which included so much of Fred’s work, and him always away from home.
There were rumors that he started a relationship with Joann Rosario Condrey but it turned out to be false since Joann is in a very happy marriage.
It seems that he is still single but he is not against remarrying one day. He lives in Texas and is closely connected to his daughter BreeAnn.
BreeAnn has inherited a music talent from him and is also passionate about music.
He underwent knee surgery in 2014 and he shared his journey on social media. The surgery was done on both of his knees because he could barely walk before the surgery.
He posted a long tweet a few days after the surgery in which he shared his thoughts and asks for prayers in his recovery. He believes in the power of prayers.
Quick summary
Full name: Frederick William Hammond
Date of birth: December 27, 1960
Birthplace: Austin, Texas, United States
Age: 59
Profession: gospel singer, bassist,
Height: Na
Weight: NA
Net Worth: $500