The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, are poised to focus on future endeavors following the recent termination of their partnership with Spotify.
The royal couple, who had signed a reported $20 million deal with the music streaming service, were met with considerable backlash after Spotify made public their mutual decision to part ways. Us Weekly cited an anonymous insider claiming that Harry and Meghan were displeased with how the news was communicated.
According to the unnamed source, "Spotify was supposed to release a statement saying how great it was to work with Meghan, but they didn't." Furthermore, the source revealed that Spotify's team had been nudging the couple for more content over the past year, hinting that the Sussexes failed to meet Spotify's content demands before the dissolution of the deal.
The insider also informed Us Weekly that Markle, 41, had discovered her Spotify podcast "Archetypes" was being discontinued before the announcement of the split. As per the source, "It seems to be one assault after another these days, with people lining up to take cheap shots at them." The royal couple is purportedly weary of these criticisms.
Despite the unfavorable outcome of their Spotify deal, Harry and Meghan are reportedly focused on their future prospects. The couple has "a ton of exciting things in the pipeline," as per the source. "[They're] ready to come back stronger," the insider added, highlighting the couple's resilient spirit.
These developments came on the heels of comments from Jeremy Zimmer, United Talent Agency CEO, who called into question Markle's audio talent. Similarly, Spotify executive Bill Simmons referred to the royal couple as "grifters" on his podcast.
The representative of WME, Markle's talent agency, previously announced that the former "Suits" actress would be creating new content for another platform, following the non-renewal of her podcast by Spotify. According to The Wall Street Journal, "The team behind 'Archetypes' (remains) proud of the podcast they created at Spotify," the representative said, confirming Markle's plans to continue developing content for the 'Archetypes' audience.
The Journal reported that the Sussexes had fallen short of productivity benchmarks required to secure the full payout from their Spotify deal, which caused rumors that Netflix might also cut ties with the couple. However, the streaming giant, which entered into a multimillion-dollar, multiyear deal with the couple in 2020, reaffirmed its strong partnership with the Sussexes and disclosed that they have several ongoing projects with Netflix.
"We value our partnership with Archewell Productions," a Netflix spokesperson told People, adding, "'Harry & Meghan' was Netflix's biggest documentary debut ever, and we'll continue to work together on a number of projects, including the upcoming documentary series 'Heart of Invictus.'"