Nelson Interview Leads Off Season Two of ''On Something''

RADIO ONLINE | Monday, July 13, 2020

On Something

Colorado Public Radio's podcast "On Something," exploring the political, legal and cultural effects of cannabis legalization, launches its second season next week with a special interview. Music legend Willie Nelson joins host Ann Marie Awad to discuss his impact on Country music and the impact cannabis has had on him -- including his first interactions with it, his personal and political relationship with it, questions around cannabis and the criminal justice system and his influence on the legalization movement.

"We need to end the federal ban on cannabis, stop putting people in prison for it, and we need to open up the federal banking system and accept taxes nationally," Nelson told Awad. "I don't see anything wrong with that."

Season two will also explore stories from the intersection of cannabis and the American healthcare system. Listeners will meet a mother who faced allegations of child abuse after smoking weed while pregnant; talk with a pain researcher who, while battling cancer, used cannabis to treat herself; and visit Louisiana for an amusing origin story on the nation's first medical marijauna law.

Last season the podcast told stories of how pot first became illegal and how states addressed old cannabis-related convictions for crimes that are in many cases no longer illegal. Season one also looked at the conflict between legalization and immigration laws, the sometimes vague science behind CBD products and the question of whether legalization should be approached as a form of reparations for the War on Drugs.

The show also responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with a series of bonus episodes that featured personal stories about how people are using weed to cope with these anxious times.

"The biggest changes in drug policy in America are happening in the states," said Ann Marie Awad. "On Something, through the power of personal stories and in-depth journalism, helps listeners understand what life after legalization means."