A top Spotify podcast exec has called Prince Harry and Meghan Markle “fucking cheaters” after they only produced a 13-episode podcast series for the company and then split.
The end of the couple’s alleged $20 million deal was announced Thursday night, three years after it was signed.
Spotify and the Sussexes’ audio production company, Archewell Audio, released a joint statement, saying they “by mutual consent have decided to go their separate ways and are proud of the series we’ve made together.”
Bill Simmons, Spotify’s head of podcast innovation and monetization, condemned the couple on Friday in an episode of his own podcast.
“These damn scammers.” “This is the podcast we should have started with them,” he said.
“One night I have to get drunk and tell the story of the Zoom I had with Harry to help him with a podcast idea.” It’s one of my best stories.’
Bill Simmons (left), who sold his podcast and sports journalism company The Ringer to Spotify for $200 million in 2020, is now Spotify’s head of podcast innovation. On Friday he described the Duke and Duchess of Sussex (right) as “fucking scammers” after they parted ways with the company
Meghan Markle’s Spotify podcast Archetypes will not be renewed for a second season
Simmons, a sportswriter, founded the sports and pop culture website and podcast network The Ringer and sold it to Spotify for $200 million in 2020.
He then moved to Spotify and has long been critical of the couple.
Last January he criticized Prince Harry, saying it was “embarrassing” to be associated with the same company.
“Shoot that guy in the air,” he said, according to sports website The Big Lead.
“I’m so sick of this guy.” What does he bring with him? He just whines about shit and keeps giving interviews.
“Who gives shit?” Who cares about your life?
“You weren’t even the favorite son. “You live in crappy Montecito and you only sell documentaries and podcasts and no one cares what you have to say about anything unless you’re talking about the royal family and just complaining about them.”
Spotify recently laid off staff and reduced big-name talent to focus more on the creator economy.
The streaming giant announced it would lay off around 200 employees — about two percent of its workforce — who work on its podcast teams. It was pointed out that although podcasts are popular with listeners, it is difficult to make them profitable.
Markle’s Spotify podcast Archetypes will not be renewed for a second season.
The move to abandon the Duchess of Sussex’s show, which is about the “labels trying to hold women back”, follows discussions months ago about a renewal for a second series.
Insiders close to the audio giant claim the royal couple failed to meet the productivity target needed to receive the full payout, the Wall Street Journal reported.
However, Markle still plans to create more podcasts and find a new home for her series, which previously starred her friend and tennis star Serena Williams, pop sensation Mariah Carey and South African comedian Trevor Noah.
Archetypes launched last August and examined the “labels trying to hold women back”. The Duke and Duchess reportedly signed the $20 million deal but will not receive the full payout as the productivity threshold was not met
Meghan ended her 12th episode of the Archetypes podcast series with a defiant poem about survival
The show’s cancellation came after sources close to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex claimed the couple would stop making extensive Netflix documentaries, release memoirs and sit down for interviews about the royal family as they “didn’t have anything.” have more to say”.
Talent agency WME, which recently signed Meghan, told The Wall Street Journal: “The team behind Archetypes continues to be proud of the podcast they have created at Spotify.”
“Meghan continues to develop more content for the Archetypes audience on another platform.”
The podcast topped the Spotify charts the week it premiered.
Meghan ended her 13th and final Archetypes episode with a defiant poem about survival – but didn’t mention a possible second season.
Closing the show, which featured men for the first time, she quoted post-war Greek poet Dinos Christianopoulos and said, ‘What didn’t you do to bury me?’ But you forgot I was a seed.’
Talks are ongoing to release more content from Archwell – the royal couple’s production company, The Wall Street Journal reported.
There are also suggestions Meghan could soon be trying to bring back her wellness and lifestyle blog, The Tig, to compete with Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop website, which is reportedly worth $250 million.
It is reported that the couple will stop making documentaries and tell-all books as they have “nothing left to say”.
The royal couple have made millions since moving to California. Prince Harry’s bombastic memoir Spare was part of a $20 million book deal
Since officially exiting the royal family and moving to California in 2020, the Duke and Duchess have pursued different avenues to generate income.
These include Prince Harry’s bombastic memoir, Spare, which he penned as part of a $20 million deal with Penguin Books.
The couple also teamed up with Netflix to produce the Harry and Meghan documentary series. The streaming giant reportedly paid the couple $100 million for the six-episode series.