Otis Redding III, the son of the late legendary soul singer, has died at the age of 59.
His family confirmed that he passed away after battling cancer yesterday (April 19).
“It is with heavy hearts that the family of Otis Redding III confirms that he lost his battle with cancer last evening,” his sister, Karla Redding-Andrews, said in a statement posted on the Facebook page of the Otis Redding Foundation – the family’s charity in Macon. She also added: “Please keep our family in your prayers at this time and please respect our privacy as we consume this huge loss.”
Otis Redding III and his brother, Dexter, along with a cousin, Mark Lockett, formed the funk band The Reddings in the 1980s, who went on to record six albums. Otis was a guitarist with the group, Dexter, played bass and handled the vocals and Lockett played keyboards.
The Reddings had a top 10 hit on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart in 1980 with ‘Remote Control’.
After the band recorded their final album in 1988 he went on to tour as a guitarist for a soul singer Eddie Floyd, with whom he also sang a number of his late father’s songs.
Redding III continued to perform his father’s songs in concert and appeared onstage at Carnegie Hall in 2018 for an Otis Redding tribute concert.
He also worked with his family’s foundation to organise summer camps that taught children to play music and he served as board president for the local chapter of Meals on Wheels.
His father, who was famous for hits such as ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay’, ‘Respect’ and ‘Try A Little Tenderness’, died with several band members in a plane crash on December 10, 1967.