He dropped out of high school at the age of 15 to support his family, working with Little Richard's backing band, the Upsetters, and performing in talent shows at Macon's historic Douglass Theatre.

In addition to "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay", some of his best-known songs include his self-penned "Respect" (1965), which later became more widely associated with Aretha Franklin's cover, and his rendition of "Try a Little Tenderness" (1966).

Every Sunday he earned $6 by performing gospel songs for Macon radio station WIBB,[7][8] and he won the $5 prize in a teen talent show for 15 consecutive weeks.

[13] Redding's breakthrough came in 1958 on disc jockey Hamp Swain's "The Teenage Party", a talent contest at the local Roxy and Douglass Theatres.

[14][8] Johnny Jenkins, a locally prominent guitarist, was in the audience and, finding Redding's backing band lacking in musical skills, offered to accompany him.

[7] A member of Pat T. Cake and the Mighty Panthers, Redding toured the southern United States on the Chitlin' Circuit, a string of venues that were hospitable to African-American entertainers during the era of racial segregation, which lasted into the early 1960s.

He signed with Confederate and recorded a single, "Shout Bamalama" (a rewrite of "Gamma Lamma") and "Fat Girl", together with his band Otis and the Shooters.

Huckaby's description of their circumstances living in the "big old raggedy" Hotel Theresa is quoted by Peter Guralnick in his 1999 book Sweet Soul Music.

Walden signed more musicians, including Percy Sledge, Johnnie Taylor, Clarence Carter and Eddie Floyd, and together with Redding, they founded two production companies.

His performance received critical acclaim, including positive press in the Los Angeles Times, and he penetrated mainstream popular culture.

[25] In late 1966, Redding returned to the Stax studio and recorded several tracks, including "Try a Little Tenderness", written by Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly and Harry M. Woods in 1932.

[49] The majority of the group arrived in London on March 13,[47][50] but Redding had flown in days earlier for interviews, such as at The Eamonn Andrews Show.

[43] His decision to take his protege Conley (whom Redding and Walden had contracted directly to Atco/Atlantic Records rather than to Stax/Volt) on the tour, instead of more established Stax/Volt artists such as Rufus Thomas and William Bell, produced negative reactions.

's with the Mar-Keys horn section) opened with Cooke's "Shake", after which he delivered an impromptu speech, asking the audience if they were the "love crowd"[60] and looking for a big response.

"[61] According to Sweet Soul Music, musicians such as Brian Jones and Jimi Hendrix were captivated by his performance; Robert Christgau wrote in Esquire, "The Love Crowd screamed one's mind to the heavens.

[68] Redding, who was 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 220 pounds (100 kg), was an athletic family man who loved American football and hunting.

He had a keen interest in supporting Black youth and, at the time of his death, had plans to construct a summer camp for disadvantaged children.

As the owner of Otis Redding Enterprises, his performances, music publishing ventures and royalties from record sales earned him more than a million dollars in 1967 alone.

[86] Besides Redding, the other victims of the crash were four members of the Bar-Kays—guitarist Jimmy King, tenor saxophonist Phalon Jones, organist Ronnie Caldwell, and drummer Carl Cunningham; their valet, Matthew Kelly; and the pilot Fraser.

[90] Redding died just three days after re-recording "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"[91][63] and was survived by Zelma and four children, Otis III, Dexter, Demetria, and Karla.

In September 2007, the first official DVD anthology of Redding's live performances was released by Concord Music Group, then owners of the Stax catalog.

Richie Unterberger of AllMusic noted his "hoarse, gritty vocals, brassy arrangements, an emotional way with both party tunes and aching ballads.

"[109] In the book Rock and Roll: An Introduction, authors Michael Campbell and James Brody suggested that "Redding's singing calls to mind a fervent black preacher.

[110] Booker T. Jones described Redding's singing as energetic and emotional but said that his vocal range was limited, reaching neither low nor high notes.

[111] Peter Buckley, in The Rough Guide to Rock, describes his "gruff voice, which combined Sam Cooke's phrasing with a brawnier delivery" and later suggested he "could testify like a hell-bent preacher, croon like a tender lover or get down and dirty with a bluesy yawp".

[115] In "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" he abandoned familiar romantic themes for "sad, wistful introspections, amplified by unforgettable descending guitar riffs by Cropper".

According to journalist Ruth Robinson, author of the liner notes for the 1993 box set, "It is currently a revisionist theory to equate soul with the darker side of man's musical expression, blues.

[114] His LP releases earned him recognition from music critic Robert Christgau as "one of soul's few reliable long-form artists"; Christgau deems Otis Blue his "first great album",[128] and Mat Snow regards it as an early indication of the album era, in which the LP would overtake singles in commercial and artistic importance.

[133][134] Other artists influenced by Redding include Led Zeppelin,[135][136] the Grateful Dead,[137] Lynyrd Skynyrd,[138] the Doors,[137] and virtually every soul and R&B musician from the early years, such as Al Green, Etta James,[43] William Bell,[137] Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye and Conley.

[147] The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Redding in 1989, declaring his name to be "synonymous with the term soul music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm and blues into a form of funky, secular testifying.