Tomorrow, the Twelve Tribes of Israel marks the 89th anniversary of Haile Selassie I’s coronation as Ethiopian Emperor, with an event at the organisation’s Hope Road headquarters.

The show has been held annually since 2009. It was first staged during the 1970s at theatres throughout Kingston, including Palace, Majestic, The Ritz, Tropical and Ward.

A number of pop and roots acts are scheduled to perform at tomorrow’s event including singers Mikey Spice, Warrior King, Micah Shemaiah, Israel Voice and Dalton Browne.

Paul “Ashes” Ashton, a Twelve Tribes of Israel member since 1976, is one of the show’s organisers. He said recognising Selassie I’s coronation remains a central part of the group’s calendar, as well as the message of repatriation to Africa by persons of African descent.

“It’s important to show the significance of His Imperial Majesty not just to the movement but to society overall,” Ashton told Jamaica Observer’s Splash.

The Twelve Tribes of Israel was founded in 1968 by Vernon “The Prophet Gad” Carrington in Trench Town. Its membership soared during the 1970s, comprising reggae stars like Bob Marley, Dennis Brown, Freddie McGregor, Little Roy and Judy Mowatt, and a number of popular sports figures like footballers Alan “Skill” Cole and Trevor “Jumpy” Harris.

The Twelve Tribes ranks also included Dr Peter Phillips, current leader of the People’s National Party.

A show to mark the coronation was first held in 1974 with acts including Marley, Brown and Little Roy performing. That year, Selassie I, who visited Jamaica in April 1966, was overthrown by a military uprising.

He died in 1975 but is still revered by the Tribes as their symbolic leader. In 1948, Selassie I dedicated sections of Ethiopia’s Shashemane region to West Indians of African heritage interested in settling there.

Several Jamaicans who accepted his gesture still live there with their families.

The Twelve Tribes of Israel celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. Carrington, its spiritual leader, died in 2005.