President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen have known each other since 2008 and although their careers and backgrounds are very different, they have a strong friendship which comes across in their new podcast series.
The Obama’s production company, Higher Ground and Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) have released the first two episodes of their second original podcast from their ongoing partnership, Renegades: Born in the USA.
The eight-episode podcast features President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen in conversation with each other, exploring a variety of topics including race, fatherhood, marriage, and the state of America.
It’s a personal, in-depth discussion between two friends exploring their pasts, their beliefs, and the country they love – as it was, as it is, and as it ought to be going forward. The series will include a music-rich dialogue between the former President and one of America’s most iconic artists.
In the introduction of the first episode, Barak Obama asks: “How did we get here? How could we find our way back to a more unifying American story?”
He then goes on to explain: “That topic came to dominate so many of my conversations last year—with Michelle, with my daughters and with friends. And one of the friends just happened to be Mr. Bruce Springsteen.
“On the surface, Bruce and I don’t have a lot in common. But over the years, what we’ve found is that we’ve got a shared sensibility. About work, about family and about America.
“In our own ways, Bruce and I have been on parallel journeys trying to understand this country that’s given us both so much. Trying to chronicle the stories of its people. Looking for a way to connect our own individual searches for meaning and truth and community with the larger story of America.”
The first two episodes of Renegades: Born in the USA are available now to Free and Premium Spotify users around the world.