--- description: The rapper and president share their experiences with addictive substances and discuss the dire state of the national opioid crisis. title: Macklemore Interviews President Obama About Opioid Addiction image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # President Obama and Macklemore Discuss the Dangers of Opioid Addiction in New Documentary  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 7, 2016 9:18 PM CUT  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 7, 2016 9:18 PM CUT [Rapper Macklemore teamed up](http://time.com/3664999/macklemore-sesame-street/?iid=sr-link2 "undefined") with MTV’s documentary unit to produce an hour-long show on [the dangers of opioid addiction](http://time.com/4468400/surgeon-general-letter-opioid-addiction/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined"), and he had a pretty A-list co-star: none other than President Obama, who participated in an interview with the “Thrift Shop” rapper. _Prescription for Change: Ending America’s Opioid Crisis_ premiered at the [White House’s South by South Lawn event](http://time.com/4517852/leonardo-dicaprio-told-president-obama-hes-signed-up-to-go-to-mars/?iid=sr-link2 "undefined") earlier this week. In it, Macklemore explores the dire opioid addiction epidemic plaguing America, [discussing his own experiences](http://www.mtv.com/video-clips/5a1j71/prescription-for-change-macklemore-talks-prescription-dependency "undefined") with addictive substances. “When I was a teenager, I used drugs and drank and pretty much tried whatever was out there, but I was in Hawaii, and it was a pretty relaxed place,” [he explains.](http://www.mtv.com/video-clips/319a5o/prescription-for-change-president-obama-macklemore-talk-addiction "undefined") “I was lucky I did not get addicted—except to cigarettes, which took me a long time to kick.” Obama went on to share a hopeful message. “The good news is that awareness is starting to rise,” he [tells Macklemore](http://www.mtv.com/video-clips/1ga06u/prescription-for-change-president-obama-discusses-opioid-addiction-growth-in-america "undefined"). “And, I’ll be honest with you, part of what’s starting to change is that the opioids crisis is getting into communities that are suburban, that are relatively well to do, rural communities, white communities, and people’s kids who are being affected are folks who have a voice.” > [](https://twitter.com/USRealityCheck/status/784471014822465536) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4523453/president-obama-macklemore-documentary/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4523453/president-obama-macklemore-documentary/"},"headline":"President Obama and Macklemore Discuss the Dangers of Opioid Addiction in New Documentary","datePublished":"2016-10-07T21:18:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:37:27.504Z","description":"“I was lucky I did not get addicted\"","url":"https://time.com/4523453/president-obama-macklemore-documentary/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Barack Obama","celebrities","Culture"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4523453/president-obama-macklemore-documentary/","name":"President Obama and Macklemore Discuss the Dangers of Opioid Addiction in New Documentary"}}]}] ```