Jake Hess was born in 1927 in Alabama. He started singing at age 16, joining the John Daniel Quartet. In the mid-1940s, he sang with the Sunny South Quartet and the Melody Masters Quartet. His distinctive vocal style and contagious enthusiasm came to the forefront of Gospel music after he joined the Statesmen in 1948. He would stay with the Statesmen for the next fifteen years. During this era, the group redefined the genre, and Hess's voice can be heard on their original versions of countless classics still being sung today.

In 1964, he left the Statesmen to form his dream super-group, the Imperials, with tenor Shaun Nielsen (and later Jim Murray), baritone Gary McSpadden, bass Armond Morales, and pianist Henry Slaughter. He stayed with the group until health issues forced him off the road in 1967.

After leaving the Imperials, he made solo recordings and performed solo dates, winning three Grammy® awards (1968, 1969, and 1970) for his solo work. During the 1970s, he toured with his children as the Jake Hess Sound and was a regular performer on televangelist Gene Scott's program. In 1981, he joined the Masters V, picking up another Grammy® for the group's self-titled debut. In 1982, he was inducted into the Gospel Music Association's Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

In 1991, he was featured on the first Gaither Homecoming Video; he became a staple on the videos and in the concerts for the remainder of his life. He was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in 1995 and into the Southern Gospel Music Association's Southern Gospel Hall of Fame in 1997. 

He came to Crossroads for his final two solo recordings, All of Me (2001) and Gotta Get a God Said (2003). He passed away on January 4, 2004.