Meghan Markle inks new podcast deal months after splitting from Spotify

LOS ANGELESwjl (TND) — Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, announced the launch of a new podcast venture Tuesday nearly eight months she and Prince Harry cut ties with streaming giant Spotify.

Meghan, who hosted the short-lived podcast "Archetypes," a 12-episode series of celebrity interviews that aimed to explore stereotypes used against woman, said she would be devising a new show with Lemonada Media, a female-founded company noted for producing a podcasts with female comedians like Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Sarah Silverman and Samantha Bee.

“I’m proud to now be able to share that I am joining the brilliant team at Lemonada to continue my love of podcasting,” the Duchess said in a statement. “Being able to support a female founded company with a roster of thought provoking and highly entertaining podcasts is a fantastic way to kick off 2024."

Lemonada also acquired the ability to distribute the "Archetypes" podcast across all platforms its products appear on, opening up the listenership for the previously Spotify-exclusive audio series.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made headlines in 2020 when the pair landed a deal reportedly worth $20 million with Spotify to distribute the shows made by their Archwell Audio production house. However, the couple announced they were parting ways with the streaming platform in June 2023 after only producing Meghan's 12-episode podcast.

According to reporting by the Wall Street Journal, Spotify was frustrated by the royals' apparent difficulty in fully conceptualizing shows to put out, as well as constant fluctuations in the Archwell Audio leadership and team.

Prince Harry especially is said to have struggled on the pitching shows front, allegedly constantly throwing out half-baked ideas like interview figures, including Pope Francis, about "fatherhood," and or the likes of Vladimir Putin, Mark Zuckerberg and Donald Trump on the potential impact of childhood trauma.

The couple also launched a new website, Sussex.com, which features their biographies and information and links to their projects and charities.