While never achieving the national popularity of contemporaries like the Ward Singers or the Caravans, the Meditation Singers were indisputably the premier Detroit-based female gospel group of the 1950s; the first Motor City act to reject a cappella vocal traditions in favor of instrumental backing, their ranks also produced a pair of secular pop stars in Della Reese and Laura Lee. Formed in 1947 as a product of Detroit's New Liberty Baptist Church's renowned Moments of Meditation choir, the Meditation Singers were primarily led by Earnestine Rundless, the wife of one-time Soul Stirrer E.A. Rundless. Created in response to calls from other churches seeking the Moments of Meditation to perform, the group was originally an octet, but their size made crosstown travel prohibitive; upon trimming down to a quartet, the Meditation Singers' original lineup comprised Rundless, Reese (who often assumed lead duties as well), alto Marie Waters (Reese's sister), and soprano Lillian Mitchell.