President Obama and Macklemore Discuss the Dangers of Opioid Addiction in New Documentary

Rapper Macklemore teamed up with MTV’s documentary unit to produce an hour-long show on the dangers of opioid addiction, 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 earlier this week. In it, Macklemore explores the dire opioid addiction epidemic plaguing America, discussing his own experiences 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. “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. “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.”