Credit: Rob DeMartin

Credit: Rob DeMartinLast year, Bruce Springsteen sat down for an in-depth conversation with former President Barack Obama that is the focus of a new eight-part podcast called Renegades: Born in the USA, the first two episodes of which debuted today at Spotify.

The podcast features the lauded politician and the legendary rocker discussing a wide range of topics including family, race, marriage, fatherhood, and the state of the U.S.

In a video trailer for Renegades: Born in the USA, Obama explains, “In our own ways, Bruce and I have been on parallel journeys, looking for a way to connect our own individual searches for meaning, truth, then community with the larger story of America. And over the course of a few days, all just a few miles from where he grew up, we talked.”

The preview, which you can watch at Spotify’s YouTube channel, includes a scene in which Springsteen and Obama discuss some issues they had with their fathers.

“My father was silent most of the time. He was not communicative, Bruce admits. “I grew up thinking, you know, my father was, like, ashamed of his family. That was was my entire picture of masculinity.”

Obama then shares, “So my father leaves when I’m two, and I don’t meet him until I’m 10 years old, when he comes to visit for a month. I have no way to connect to the guy. You know…he’s a stranger who’s suddenly in our house.”

In another segment, Bruce recalls that he bought his first guitar for $18, and that he then started learning some Beatles songs. When Obama asks him how his parents reacted, Springsteen says, mimicking them, “Turn it down!”

Renegades: Born in the USA was produced by Obama and wife Michelle‘s new High Ground Productions company.

By Matt Friedlander
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