This driving energy has taken the group to global venues like Australia's Womad, Lisbon's Music Box, and Malaysia's Rain Forest World Music Festival. It's bringing them to the U.S. for the first time this autumn for a tour as part of Center Stage, the ambitious cultural exchange program initiated by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Last night Ribab Fusion kicked off their month long tour in the United-States with a concert on the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. Ribab Fusion’s music celebrates Morocco’s Amazigh (Berber) culture, moving from 70s-style funk to Afropop dance vibes, from slow jams to high-energy call-and-responses choruses.

Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs Evan Ryan will participate in a Google+ Hangout on September 15 to discuss the impact of music diplomacy with participants from the State Department’s Center Stage and American Music Abroad programs. Representatives from the New England Foundation of the Arts and the Association of American Voices will also join the conversation.

The U.S. Department of State announced today that Indonesian performers Jogja Hip Hop Foundation is traveling from Yogyakarta, Indonesia to communities across America as part of a cultural diplomacy initiative, Center Stage, from November 15 to December 8.

The U.S. Department of State announced that Haitian performers Compagnie de Danse Jean-René Delsoin will travel to communities across America as part of a cultural diplomacy initiative, Center StageSM, October 16 - November 10, 2012.

The U.S Department of State announced today that the Papermoon Puppet Theatre will travel from Yogyakarta, Indonesia, to communities across America September 5-October 1, 2012 as part of its Center StageSM initiative