Spotify drops Duchess of Sussex’s ‘Archetypes’ podcast: Prince Harry and Meghan’s podcasting deal ends | wayne dupree

After a highly successful 2.5-year partnership, the streaming giant has parted ways with Archewell Audio – the audio production company founded by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. In a joint statement, the companies happily confirmed that they “have mutually chosen to part ways and are proud of the content we have created together.” While early reports suggested WSJ Archetypes would not return for a second season, no details were shared about the future of the streaming deal as a whole.

Sources have revealed that despite negotiations for a second season months ago, the show’s producers were recently notified that it was coming to an end. The show had addressed the issue of restrictive labels placed on women.

While the Sussexes agreed to a total of around $20 million in a deal they struck with Spotify at the end of 2020, they only produced one podcast as part of the deal. According to insiders, the couple failed to meet the production standards required to receive full compensation for the program.

The move is indicative of ongoing corrective pressure in the market for podcasts, a favored listening format that has posed profitability challenges for Spotify and other streaming services.

The Archetypes team are still thrilled with the podcast they produced for Spotify. According to a spokesperson for WME, the talent agency that recently hired Markle, Meghan is creating additional content for Archetype audiences on a separate platform.

Sources revealed that there are ongoing discussions about potential new hosts for the Archewell hardware.

Last week, Spotify laid off around 200 employees, including many sound engineers. The company announced a new podcast strategy that involves expanding episodes to other platforms and shifting the focus from producing original content to providing authoring tools for podcasters.

“Archetypes” ranked as the No. 1 most listened to podcast on Spotify in its first week. It featured celebrity guests such as comedian Mindy Kaling and Trevor Noah, singer Mariah Carey, tennis star Serena Williams and media personality Paris Hilton.

After the success of the first season, Spotify and Archewell have reportedly explored the prospect of a second season of “Archetypes”. However, weeks turned into months and those talks showed no progress. It was only recently that Spotify informed the production team of “Archetypes” that they would not be producing a second season.

Before abdicating their royal titles and moving to the United States in 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex struck content deals with Netflix and Spotify. Last year, the streaming giant released the “Harry & Meghan” docuseries, featuring the couple discussing their relationship and the circumstances surrounding their split from the royal family.

Harry’s autobiography ‘Spare’, which he published earlier this year, included details of the prince’s life in the royal family, including learning of his mother’s death and having abrasive conversations with his father. and his brother about how his wife was treated in the media.

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