Last week, Otis Taylor finally received his high school diploma in his 70s. 

Mr. Taylor, a celebrated blues musician, was the guest of honor at Manual High School in Denver. The occasion was more than just a graduation ceremony. It was an act of atonement. 

In 1966, Manual High School expelled Mr. Taylor after he refused an ultimatum.

“‘Cut your hair, or you won’t graduate,’” recalls Mr. Taylor in a phone call. “It was very simple.”

His hair wasn’t that long, just a little fluffy on the sides. But administrators at the mostly Black school targeted students, including white hippies, who weren’t regulars at a barber shop. Back then, Mr. Taylor stood out as different. He was a Black kid who played a banjo while riding a unicycle. The teenager listened to the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Muddy Waters. 

Asked what happened after he was expelled, the musician offers a wry response: “I just became Otis Taylor.”

The nonconformist artist has released 16 albums, including the 2023 release “Banjo ...” His hard-to-classify sound, which he dubs “trance blues,” centers around the banjo. The songwriter is drawn to exploring injustices faced by Native Americans and African Americans. But his unconventional approach kept him out of the mainstream. His belated breakthrough came in 2009 when director Michael Mann featured the song “Ten Million Slaves” in the movie “Public Enemies.” More recently, the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville, Tennessee, has also recognized Mr. Taylor’s work. Now, the musician’s alma mater has made amends for failing to support the musician’s individuality.

“It’s the antithesis to who we are as Manual today, that type of discrimination,” says school principal Joe Glover in a phone call. “Now we embrace that creativity. We embrace that uniqueness. ... You could tell this was meaningful and powerful for him.”

Mr. Taylor doesn’t begrudge choosing an unusual path in life.

“I have two kids. A beautiful wife, married for 37 years,” he says. “Why should I have regrets?”

Describing the graduation ceremony as a surreal experience, Mr. Taylor jokes, “Now I can apply for the Berklee school of music.” 

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct an error about Mr. Taylor’s race. He is Black.