'Hip-Hop On Trial' Debate Hits London's Barbican Stage

What happens when Jesse Jackson, Q-Tip, dream hampton, ?uestlove and KRS-One join forces with Estelle, Touré and Brown Professor Tricia Rose to discuss the role of hip-hop in our communities? The result is Intelligence Squared and Google's third installment of "Versus," a debate series where two individuals duke it out on stage, courtroom-style on a given topic, supported by commentary from a select group of professionals, artists and intellectuals. For this debate, Eamon Courtenay of Courtenay Law firm will argue that "Hip-Hop doesn't enhance society, it degrades it" while Professor Michael Eric Dyson argues against that notion.The event will be chaired by BBC "Newsnight" host Emily Maitlis and hosted on the Web by Jemima Khan, associate editor of the New Statesman and European editor-at-large for Vanity Fair.  And the beautiful part about it is that everyone can join in. The event takes place live next Tuesday at London's Barbican Centre, and the world can weigh in on the debate and even cast their vote via the Versus Google+ channel and YouTube channel.Pretty clever indeed. I will be there in the flesh and very much looking forward to it. If you're in London, tickets are still available. If not, check it out online, I have a feeling this will be quite interesting.Hip Hop on TrialTuesday, June 26 7 p.m.GMTThe Barbican Centre, LondonPurchase tickets HERECheck out the trailer below: