( L - R ) Nettleford, Sizzla
November 2, 1930, is immensely significant among the Rastafari community. On that date, His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie 1 and Empress Menen were crowned King of Kings and Queen of Queens respectively in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Naturally, the coronation date has made its way into lyrics written and performed by Rastafari, among them Sizzla (Mash Dem Down) and Ini Kamoze (Rasta Nation Now). And this evening the 79th anniversary of HIM Haile Selassie I and Empress Menen's coronation will be celebrated in music at the Bob Marley Museum, 56 Hope Road, St Andrew, from 6-11 p.m.
Slated to perform at the event, which is a charity effort for the Haile Selassie High School and the Ethiopian Orthodox Cathedral Building Fund, are Queen Ifrica, Capleton, Tony Rebel, Keteis Oyonde, Emprezz, Fredlocks, Nelly Sthare, Fyakin, Hezron, Iya Blaze, Bongo Herman and Lymie Murray.
Twelve Tribes celebration
It is one of the celebratory events, as there will be a Twelve Tribes celebration at their 81-83 Hope Road headquarters. Twelve Tribes actually have a two-day celebration, as yesterday was the 74th 'earthday' of founder Vernon Carrington, the Prophet Gad, which was marked by a dinner and a presentation on the 12 Tribes of Israel from 1968 until present. Tonight, as the coronation is celebrated, there will be a film, Twelve Tribes of Israel Music playing on both days.
Music will also be a part of the inaugural Rastafari Conference, slated for August 17-20, 2010. With the theme 'Negotiating the African Presence: Rastafari Livity and Scholarship', the conference will celebrate not only the 80th anniversary of the Rastafari movement, but also the 50th anniversary of the publication of the 'Report on The Rastafari Movement in Kingston, Jamaica', done by M.G. Smith, Roy Augier and Rex Nettleford.
Dr Michael Barnett of Rootz Foundation, one of the organisations involved in staging tonight's concert, said that in celebrating the coronation, it would be good to give money towards the legacies of HIM Haile Selassie's visit to Jamaica.
He says that, unfortunately, the school has been neglected. "That is why we had the radio fund-raiser drive last year," he said. In addition, there was also a fund-raising effort for Haile Selassie High, along with Livity Restaurant. A $100,000 donation was made to the school on September 11, 2008.
Barnett said the Bob Marley Museum appreciates the concept of holding a charity event on the coronation anniversary.
Starting and ending relatively early, 6-11 p.m., Barnett says tonight's concert will obey the Noise Abatement Act and be sensitive to the fact that it is a weekday and people will be going back to work the following day.
"It allows for people with families and who work and want to watch the full show to come," he said.
"The key concept behind this is that on the special days for His Majesty we not only celebrate the day, but we also try to uphold his legacy, we try to support some of the legacies he has left in Jamaica," Barnett said.
Dr Jahlani Niaah, coordinator of the Rastafari Conference 2010, says that central to the conference, is to bring attention to the fact that the movement, through a number of strategies, with the university at the forefront, has taken on wider significance in the Caribbean and the Diaspora. He said that the aim is to be as inclusive as possible.
Vice-Chancellor Emeritus Professor Rex Nettleford and Emeritus Professor Sir Roy Augier co-chair the conference committee.
With 2010 being a significant year for the community, there is the possibility of a coordinated calendar of events. "I think, as a result, with that timing, the conference will receive strong support if it is international as we hope," Niaah said.
The Rastafari Conference 2010 is structured with a mixture of cultural and academic events, as well as a number of exhibitions. Niaah says that the Library Exhibition will be in multimedia format, while Dr Clinton Hutton's body of work is central to the Painting and Photograph Exhibition. "A lot of what he has represents Rastafari through the voices of its elders," Niaah said.
Drumming Exhibition
Kumina, revival and burru are central to the Drumming Exhibition, which focuses on African drumming retentions, and there will also be Word and Art as well as Film and Dance workshops. "The idea is to juxtapose the student with the practitioner in a way to isolate best practice," Niaah said.
Just before the conference's closing ceremony on August 20, the Rastafari Studies Unit and Archive will be launched. Niaah points out that "we have a degree minor and we have worked as a sub-discipline within Cultural Studies. So it will be a matter of formalising and making more official what already exists in a more loosely'organised way".
Persons who wish to present papers at the inaugural Rastafari conference must submit their 150 - 200 word abstracts before March 1, 2010, to rastafaristudies@yahoo.com. In addition, "the conference welcomes creative and non-academic contributions through workshops, video presentations, artistic displays and other articulate forms of expression".