By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally Friday, November 6, 2015
V-103 morning host Ryan Cameron interviewed Pres. Obama Thursday at the White House.
The interview will air on V-103 at 7:30 a.m. Monday.
Cameron Friday morning said Mayor Kasim Reed's office reached out to him Tuesday, saying Obama wanted to meet with him and four other radio hosts Thursday to talk about health care. Cameron paid for a flight up to D.C. on Wednesday. He was told about 400,000 people eligible for the Affordable Care Act have not signed up in metro Atlanta and Obama wanted a big platform to convey that message. He also wanted to talk about justice reform.
Each host was given five minutes of one-on-one time with the president at the White House on Thursday. Cameron chose to finish last in hopes of getting a little more time and he succeeded, pulling in eight minutes.
Cameron said Obama recognized him from two previous brief encounters in Atlanta, telling him, "You always dress so sharp."
The hometown morning host said compared to the meet-and-greet set ups before, he said seeing Obama at his home was different. "He was so relaxed," he said.
One thing did freak him out: he had all these questions to ask and Obama seemed to anticipate some of them before he even asked them. Referencing "Scandal," he said, it was like "some B613 stuff going on."
Cameron wore his good-luck pin given to him by his favorite basketball player of all time, Dr. Julius Erving. After he and Erving became friends, the basketball legend gave Cameron a sweep pin he had received from his 1983 sweep of the Lakers while he played for the 76ers. Cameron treasures it.
After Obama noted his sharp-dressed ways, Cameron mentioned the pin and told him the story. Obama mentioned to him how much he loved that team. "It was just wow," Cameron said. "He was trying to explain to his staff but he was like, 'You guys don't remember. You're way too young!' "
Obama has reached out over the years to black radio talk show hosts when he needs to get specific messages out to that audience, including Steve Harvey, Rickey Smiley and Cameron's predecessor Frank Ski.
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