Jeff Chang. Photo by Jeremy Keith Villaluz

Reception: 5:30 pm North Gate Hall Courtyard

Main event venue: Jarvis Auditorium | 6:30 pm (conversation + audience Q&A)

Jeff Chang’s first book, Can’t Stop Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation, was called one of the best nonfiction books of the last quarter century. His latest, Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America (Mariner), was named one of 2025’s Best by Publisher’s Weekly, Alta, Vogue, Kirkus, and NPR. He authored the award-winning Who We Be: A Cultural History of Race in Post Civil Rights America, and We Gon’ Be Alright: Notes On Race and Resegregation. He has written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, The Guardian, the San Francisco Chronicle, and many more. He is the host of the Signal award-winning podcast, Edge of Reason, and of KALW Public Media’s podcast, Notes From the Edge.

In WATER MIRROR ECHO: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America, award-winning author Jeff Chang delivers a groundbreaking cultural biography of Bruce Lee, timed to Lee’s 85th birthday year in 2025.

Drawing on thousands of personal documents (including letters, diaries, and rare photos) and exclusive, in-depth interviews with Lee’s inner circle (including his first love, close friends, and early fighting mentors), Chang offers a stunning dual portrait: the complex human story of Lee and the extraordinary, untold story of the creation of Asian America. Through Lee’s experiences, Chang charts the rise of Asian America as a powerful political and cultural force that endures to this day.

About Shereen Marisol Meraji

Shereen Marisol Meraji. Photo: Marlena Telvick

Shereen Marisol Meraji is a veteran audio producer and journalist who has been telling stories with sound for more than two decades. Shereen helped create NPR’s groundbreaking and critically acclaimed podcast covering race and identity, Code Switch. During her time as co-host and senior producer, Code Switch won numerous awards and Apple Podcasts named Code Switch its first-ever “show of the year.” She was awarded Harvard’s prestigious Nieman fellowship in 2022 before becoming an associate professor of race in journalism and head of audio at UC Berkeley Journalism.

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