Walter Hawkins

Since the early 1970 s Bishop Walter Hawkins and the Hawkins Family have sold over 2 million albums, won two Stellar Awards, three GMA Dove Awards and received a Grammy Award in 1981 for Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational for the special project The Lord s Prayer, and multiple
Grammy nominations since.
Bishop Hawkins started his career in one of his brother s chorales, The Northern California State Youth Choir
of the Church of God in Christ. Later, he accompanied his brother Edwin and founded The Edwin Hawkins Singers. This collaborative effort produced the hit song Oh Happy Day , which became one of the first gospel songs to cross over onto mainstream music charts.
Walter Hawkins left The Edwin Hawkins Singers in the early 1970s to establish the Love Center Church in Oakland, California. He and his Love Center Choir
(which included his brother, sisters Lynette & Feddie, cousin Shirley Miller and his former wife, Tramaine) had considerable success with their Love Alive series of recordings, which sold well over a million copies from the 1970s through the 1990s. In all, Walter Hawkins produced and/or collaborated on 116 hit songs which were listed on the Billboard Gospel Music charts.
Walter Hawkins passion, style and approach to worship revolutionized gospel music and still inspires artists to this day! Sadly, Bishop Hawkins passed away in 2010 though his music and legacy will live on forever.