Meridian's Director of Cultural Programs, Lindsay Amini, and Next Level Associate Director, Junious Brickhouse, introduce the Next Level Hip Hop Diplomacy Program, an initiative of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and administered by the Music Department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and most recently, Meridian International Center. 2017 marks the first year that Meridian has been brought on as an administrator of the program. This year 20 American artists from various disciplines of hip hop will travel in teams to Morocco, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Burma and Vietnam to facilitate workshops, performances and other programming to engage international audiences and foster cross-cultural exchange through hip hop music and dance. These artists will also facilitate workshops that support the professional development of international artists from those communities and promote conflict resolution.
