"Otis" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West from their first collaborative album Watch the Throne (2011).

The track received highly positive reviews from music critics who praised the trading off of verses by the two rappers and the Redding-sampled beat, which was compared to the style heard on West's The College Dropout.

The video primarily shows West and Jay-Z modifying a Maybach luxury car and then driving around in it with no doors or windows.

On July 7, 2011, "Otis" was previewed along with the other songs from Watch the Throne by Jay-Z at a private listening session at the Mercer Hotel in New York City.

[9] Bu Thiam, Def Jam vice-president of A&R, was with West and Jay-Z throughout the recording process and saw how the duo came up with several of the Watch the Throne tracks.

[13] Pitchfork's Tom Breihan summarized the composition, writing: ... here's Jay-Z on the "Otis" intro: "It sounds so soulful!

But even if the sample works as a sort of audio money-flaunt, it's also a tough and hard chop from Kanye—Otis Redding's magnificent voice mostly limited to a couple of hellfire grunts, the song itself held to a sharp guitar stab.

[16] To celebrate the fifth anniversary of the song, Roc Nation executive Lenny Santiago took to Instagram to share how Kanye created the beat within 20 minutes.

It's one of my favorite songs, tracks and Lyrics from the classic album, Watch The Throne by Jay Z & Kanye West.

We were almost towards the end of the album and he was telling everyone in the room that as soon as he returns, he wanted to fuck with this Otis Redding sample idea he had.

As he was being reminded that he had to leave to catch his flight, he sort of brushed that off and was like, fuck it, let me just play y'all a piece of the song so you could see how dope it is.

[3][16][18] Pitchfork Media's Tom Breiham praised the song, saying "Jay and Kanye trade off verses and never pause for a chorus, each one building on whatever the last one said-- an old-school rap-collab style you almost never hear anymore.

[14] Simon Vozick-Levinson of Rolling Stone gave the song a four star rating out of five and wrote that "West twists a few seconds of Otis Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness" into a Blueprint-style barrage, setting the stage for some slick collar-popping from Jay-Z ("Photo shoot fresh, looking like wealth / I'm about to call the paparazzi on myself").

Jay's performance, in turn, inspires Ye to step up his wordplay ("Luxury rap, the Hermès of verses / Sophisticated ignorance, write my curses in cursive"); the younger star sounds like he pulled an all-nighter trying to outdo his mentor's rhymes.

"[19] Frank Berg of NME gave the song a mostly positive review, stating that "What we have here are two titans of black music duetting with another from beyond the grave.

For that reason, it's unquestionably An Event", though feeling "In all honesty, if this winds up being the highlight of Watch the Throne we'll all be a bit disappointed.

"[20] Seattle Weekly's Joe Williams enjoyed the song, writing "even with the slow, bubbling beat and energetic keyboards, topped with top-notch delivery by Jay and Kay, it's Redding in the background that gives the single its true life and flair.

"[22] Sam Gould The Independent remarked "having seen oddball rap collective Odd Future become the talking point of the blogosphere, Eminem and old partner-in-crime Royce da 5'9" start work on their own bruising collaborative effort, and hazy vibe rappers Wiz Khalifa and Curren$y take steps in the same direction, Jay and Ye have recognized the throne is far from unchallenged, and have come together in the most remarkable dual alliance since André 3000 and Big Boi became Outkast.

There was that first line of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, 'I fantasized 'bout this back in Chicago,' and then, the relief after it, where you didn't have to worry about the rest of that album", and Billboard claimed, "Otis gets better with each play".

[16] However, Chicago Tribune writer Greg Kot was less enthusiastic about the track, musing that "the references to luxury cars and private jets quickly lose their escapist luster, grossly out of step with a summer in which joblessness and foreclosure are becoming all too common for many Americans" and that "just as disappointing is that the Redding sample – a thrilling burst of agitated vocals, classic Memphis horns, organ and drums – never goes anywhere.

[27][28] Time's Claire Suddath placed the song at number four on her best of the year list, writing "the lead single off Watch the Throne mixes and loops Otis Redding's passionate shouts and screams from "Try a Little Tenderness," paying homage to his soulful style while mixing it up by adding heavy beats and chopping up the original track's piano tune.

[33] Rappers Tinie Tempah, Chipmunk, Wretch 32, and Jadakiss with Styles P of The LOX also released a remix and freestyle.

[49] The video primarily shows West and Jay-Z destroying and then customizing a Maybach 57 and then racing around an industrial lot in it (with no doors or windows), while four models smile and laugh from the backseat.

[49] The "dynamic duo take a saber saw to a glistening new Maybach and turn it into a tricked-out 'Thunderdome' cruiser, then do doughnuts in a parking lot with a gaggle of models packed in the back.

We get fireworks, fist bumps, a fast car, and general larger-than-life camaraderie rather than, say, guys on fire running in slow-motion.

[54] On August 28, 2011, Jay-Z and Kanye West performed the song for the first time at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards.