The First Cosmopolitan All Male Chorus has its origins in the men's choir of the Fayetteville Street Baptist Church, a "little mission church" formed in 1895 in Raleigh, North Carolina. While they initially sang with a piano during services, the group began developing their own sound after choosing to perform a capella. As Raleigh underwent a program of urban renewal, the Fayetville Street Baptist church relocated as the "First Cosmopolitan Baptist Church." The group adopted the name of their newfound home and became the First Cosmopolitan All Male Chorus. Since then, the chorus has performed at other churches from the Carolinas up the Eastern seaboard to New Jersey and New York, all while maintaining their duties at their home church in Raleigh. These recordings-made in 1998 by Music Maker Foundation founder Tim Duffy-are a small sample of their vast repertoire. Described by Professor Glenn Hinson as possessing "singular and provocative style," the group blends the older Jubilee style with more contemporary sounds. When arranging songs, the First Cosmopolitans place harmony above all else, creating rich vocal tapestries unlike anything else in gospel music.
