Respecting the legacy of Macon’s ‘King of Soul’

It’s a full-on weekend of respect this Friday and Saturday as the Otis Redding Foundation presents its 2024 “King of Soul Music Festival.”

Friday is “An Evening of Respect,” a gala at the Macon City Auditorium at 7 p.m. – more on that in a minute.

The festival continues Saturday at the Capitol Theatre with the “Big ‘O’ Homecoming Show & Dance” featuring DJ N.A.B.S. starting at 8 p.m. Doors open at 7 p.m. It’s $20 to get in.

The Otis Redding Foundation puts on the “King of Soul Music Festival” around Otis Redding’s birthday to show respect for the legendary and multi-talented singer, songwriter, performer, entrepreneur and philanthropist. 

This year his birthday is Monday. He would have been 83 had his life not been tragically cut short in an airplane crash while on tour in
Wisconsin. 

He was 26 and only months earlier appeared at the Monterey International Pop Festival where he wowed counterculture hippies and the California music scene which widened his audience dramatically. Reportedly, he had just recorded (“Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay” at STAX Records in early December which was released after his death. It became a cross-genres hit, his signature song and an instant classic.

Another classic he wrote is “Respect,” which he wrote and released in 1965. It was a hit and had its own crossover success but the song really took off when Aretha Franklin recorded her version in 1967.

Aside from the connotations the song might have had as recorded by Redding or Franklin, I expect he would never have imagined how the simple idea of respect would play out in his legacy.

Macon sure respects him. Generations of fans and would-be performers locally and internationally look up to him as an inspiration. Now, through the foundation operated by his family to continue his philanthropic endeavors, especially those to help young people, the respect piles higher and higher.

Proceeds from the festival support the foundation’s programs and the Otis Redding Center for the Arts, a soon-to-be-completed multipurpose space open to students ages 5-18 who desire to explore music and the music business. The facility will be a new centerpiece for downtown Macon and is scheduled to be completed this fall with students occupying it sometime in 2025, according to Justin Andrews, Redding’s grandson and the foundation’s director of special projects and outreach programs.

The center will allow the foundation to enlarge services and programs such as ongoing private music lessons and workshops as well as its well-known Otis Music Camp and Camp DREAM.

Coming full circle, two members of Friday’s opening act for “An Evening of Respect” are former foundation camp participants: Guitarist Dustin McCook and bassist Evan Bentzel of the Macon Music Revue. Both are alumni of the Otis Music Camp who took part from their middle school years through high school.

The two, along with other Macon Music Revue members, are well known independently in the area as talented musicians and are known now as part of the revue – a preservation band of sorts focusing on Macon’s musical heritage. They play Wednesdays at historic Grant’s Lounge as well as other venues and as part of promotional endeavors for Macon tourism. 

“Dusty and Evan came up through the Otis Music Camp and their talent and professionalism today demonstrate exactly why the Otis Redding Center for the Arts will be such an invaluable destination for music education,” said Karla Redding-Andrews in a release for the weekend. She is Redding’s daughter and vice president/executive director of the foundation.

Headlining “An Evening of Respect” is the internationally popular eight-piece soul band St. Paul & The Broken Bones. Following a path of Southern Soul as Redding did, they keep their roots deep but venture afield in new, funky expressions as well.

And like so many others, they have no end of respect for Redding and the work of the foundation.

“We are honored to return to Macon and perform for the Otis Redding Foundation,” said Paul Janeway, vocalist and co-founder of St. Paul & The Broken Bones in the release. “Any time we have a chance to show our love for the legacy of Otis Redding’s music, we will try our best to be there. The Redding family has been so kind to us, and we are overjoyed for the opportunity to play at this event.”

Zelma Redding, Redding’s widow who founded the foundation and is its president, had this to say.

“Paul came to ‘An Evening of Respect’ in 2016 and expressed so much love and respect for my husband’s music,” she said. “He stole the show with his fervent performance and passion.”

Redding-Andrews said her mother, Zelma, personally reached out to the band to headline the 2024 gala.

But the weekend’s respect doesn’t just flow in one direction. On Friday the foundation will show its respect by presenting various annual awards to others. They include:

-— The Georgia Music Foundation receiving “The Otis & Zelma Redding Award of Respect” in recognition of its 30 years of supporting music education, preservation and outreach.  

–— The Gia Maione Prima Foundation receiving “The Otis Redding III Award of Philanthropy” in recognition of its dedication to music education and its encouraging an appreciation for American jazz, American popular music and jazz performance.

— Songwriter Vinson “Alaz” Muhammad receiving “The Otis Redding Foundation Dream Award” for the dedication, ambition and drive he demonstrates in pursuit of artistic excellence.

Tickets for the evening are available through Ticketmaster and the City Auditorium box office through show time as long as seats are available. Balcony seats are $55 while floor tables were advance purchases by foundation donors and supporters.

More information on the “King of Soul Music Festival,” the Otis Redding Foundation and its programs and the Otis Redding Center for the Arts is at www.otisreddingfoundation.org. 

Also, don’t forget to take advantage of September’s First Friday events at shops, restaurants, bars, venues and galleries throughout downtown.

Contact writer Michael W. Pannell at [email protected] and join him on Instagram at @michael_w_pannell.