Making (WBEZ Chicago)

Former President Barack Obama — along with friends, mentors, and rivals — tells the story of his climb from Chicago to the national stage.

Before he was the 44th President, Barack Obama worked as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago. Hear how the city shaped his political ambitions.

When Barack Obama first came to Chicago, a political transformation was happening in the city. Hear how that change inspired him.

Former President Barack Obama won his first political seat in 1996. Hear what he had to learn, and the conflicts he faced, to get there.

In 2000, Barack Obama ran for Congress against a Chicago political legend. It became a contest about race and identity.

Former president Barack Obama has only lost one election in his life. It was in 2000, and that defeat set him on the course for his eventual U.S. Senate run. Making Obama is a production of listener-supported WBEZ Chicago.

Barack Obama burst onto the national stage during his U.S. Senate run. Hear how ambition and luck propelled him to Washington.

Just two and a half years after his 2004 Democratic National Convention speech, Barack Obama announced he was running for president.

Former President Barack Obama recently spoke with Aarti Shahani, host of WBEZ's Art of Power podcast, about masculinity in the post-Donald Trump era. Obama said society has made progress in recognizing the most toxic elements of bad behavior by men. But now he wants to flip the focus. “What are the positive values that we're trying to instill in our boys?” he said. “Showing compassion is not weakness. Listening is as important as talking.” We're bringing you this exclusive interview with the former president as a bonus to the Making Obama podcast series. Hear the former president explain his experience balancing ambition with family obligations and how he wants to expand the definition of what it means to be a man. And if you like what you hear, subscribe to WBEZ's Art of Power podcast for more conversations with people who have changed the world.