Michelle Obama to launch podcast about relationships and health

Former US first lady Michelle Obama has announced about starting a podcast.

The Michelle Obama Podcast is set to focus on relationship and health issues, with a series of candid conversations between the host and a variety of guests including talk show presenter Conan O'Brien and one of husband Barack Obama's former senior advisers, businesswoman Valerie Jarrett. It is set to debut exclusively on Spotify from July 29, reports The Guardian.

"My hope is that this series can be a place to explore meaningful topics together and sort through so many of the questions we're all trying to answer in our own lives," said Obama in a statement.

She added: "Perhaps most of all, I hope this podcast will help listeners open up new conversations – and hard conversations – with the people who matter most to them. That's how we can build more understanding and empathy for one another."

The podcast is part of a collaboration between Spotify and Higher Ground, the production company founded by the Obamas. It follows a productive period for Michelle Obama, who released her Netflix documentary Becoming earlier this year.

She is not the only former first lady to get in on the podcast game. In February it was announced that Hillary Clinton would be launching a podcast in late spring, although that has yet to materialise.