Lenox J. Mercedes is the creator of High Gravity Hip Hop (HGHH), the first and only hip-hop beer fest company in the world. After a long career in higher education and a background in branding for special events he put into practice what he taught his students for years—“live at the intersection of your passion and your talents.” Lenox created HGHH with one founding principle: bringing people from various cultures together in the spirit of celebrating life, community, culture and good music through sampling a great craft beer. Data-driven, intercultural, and influential, HGHH works with local and national craft beer companies to identify new markets and develop targeted branding strategies to maximize their reach.