STAFFORD “Fred Locks” Elliot was 16 years old in April 1966 when Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I made his State visit to Jamaica. He remembers being among the throng at the Harbour View roundabout in St Andrew and receiving a “personal salute” from His Majesty.

“From dat day I stop comb my hair. Rastafari is my way of life an’ I love it. I have no regrets,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

As yesterday marked the 90th anniversary of Haile Selassie’s coronation, Fred Locks celebrated the release of his new song Praise Jah done with American singer Empress Akua.

The single is produced by Issachar Muzik, a Los Angeles-based company owned by Lloyd Shaw who, like Fred Locks, is a long-standing member of the 12 Tribes of Israel.

Fred Locks, 70, is synonymous with the 1975 anthem Black Star Liner. He believes Selassie’s philosophy should be part of Jamaica’s school curriculum, given his impact on Rastafarianism and the country’s pop culture.

“Dem talk about other black leaders but none of dem are as decorated as His Majesty. Him have speeches about di importance of education an’ about religion, which ones can learn about,” he said.

On Praise Jah, Fred Locks and Empress Akua sing unapologetic praise to Selassie, a diminutive figure who had a collassal influence on Africa by courageously leading his country against Italian dictator Benito Mussolini’s Fascist forces in a 1935-37 conflict.

Selassie, who was killed in 1975 at age 83 during a coup in Ethiopia, is revered in 12 Tribes of Israel circles. In 1948 he dedicated sections of Ethiopia’s Shashemane region to West Indians of African heritage; many of the Jamaicans who live there are 12 Tribes members.