Spotify executive sends Twitter into a frenzy after scolding Harry and Meghan ...
— Meghan Markle’s glitzy podcast on Spotify has hit a dead end.
Archetypes — known for its high-profile guest list, including Paris Hilton, Mindy Kaling, Mariah Carey, and Serena Williams — will not return for a second season.
The streaming service has given the Duchess of Sussex’s project the boot after producing a scant 12 episodes that failed to justify the $20m contract signed with the royal couple’s production company Archewell Audio.
A royal stumble…
Marked by titles such as Breaking Down the Bimbo, Upending the Angry Black Woman Myth, and The Audacity of the Activist, Archetypes aired its last episode nine months ago. The podcast came into existence when Meghan and Prince Harry, stepping into the commercial world, were granted an exclusive deal by Spotify in 2020 — a time when podcasts were on a roll.
But that’s yesterday’s news…
With the Sussex brand losing its shine and Spotify cutting back on lavish celebrity contracts and costly original content, Meghan’s podcast found itself in the crossfire. Spotify and the disgraced couple announced the mutual parting of ways earlier this week, which led to the hashtag #MeghanMarkleExposed doing the rounds on Twitter.
To add insult to injury, the Head of Podcast Innovation at Spotify, Bill Simmons, sent Twitter into a frenzy when he slammed Harry and Meghan during an episode of his own podcast on Friday.
“The f***ing grifters. That’s the podcast we should have launched with them.”
Simmons then explained that he had worked with Prince Harry on a podcast idea, saying, “I’ve got to get drunk one night and tell the story of the Zoom I had with Harry to try and help him with a podcast idea. It’s one of my best stories.”
This also follows the end of Spotify’s agreement with the Obamas’ production company last year and the dismissal of hundreds of staff members from the platform’s far-reaching podcasting division.
See the Reaction on Twitter...
yep this happened! Obviously it was to hard to work 2 hours to put out a podcast.
— Katy (@JustGma3) June 16, 2023
The Harkles#MeghanMarkleEXPOSED #meghanmarkleFIRED pic.twitter.com/yVAIQqe4vd
On a recent conference call with financial analysts, Spotify’s CEO Daniel Ek admitted to some poor decisions made during the company’s ambitious $1bn spending spree in 2019 to establish the company as a significant industry player. Acknowledging their mistakes, Ek stated, “We’re going to be very diligent in how we invest in future content deals…And the ones that aren’t performing, obviously, we won’t renew.”
A royal retort…
In the aftermath of the podcast cancellation, Meghan Markle responded tersely. “The team behind Archetypes remain proud of the podcast they created at Spotify,” commented a spokesperson for the Archewell production media company. “Meghan is continuing to develop more content for the Archetypes audience on another platform.”
Here’s the bottom line:
While a dedicated fringe of vehemently anti-royalist supporters may continue to back Meghan and Harry unconditionally, the bigger picture is clear — the couple’s commercial appeal is waning, and public sentiment is embarrassingly negative.
FACT-CHECK GUARANTEE (References):
https://s29.q4cdn.com/175625835/files/doc_financials/2022/q4/Q4-2022-Earnings-Call... [Straight from the source]
https://open.spotify.com/show/07SjDmKb9iliEzpNcN2xGD [Straight from the source]
https://archewell.com/ [Straight from the source]
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