End of Harry and Meghan’s £18million Spotify deal after just one podcast series is a sign of ‘post-Megxit wave’ crashing, brand expert says
- Expert said end of Spotify contract was ‘bad news’ for Harry and Meghan’s brand
Harry and Meghan losing their lucrative Spotify deal is a sign that the couple’s ‘post-Megxit wave’ is crashing, an expert has claimed.
Variety, the bible of the entertainment industry in the US, reported yesterday that the music streaming giant had pulled the plug because they ‘expected more content’ from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their Archewell Audio team.
The Wall Street Journal, which was the first publication to report the split between the Sussexes and Spotify, also suggested they had not produced enough content to receive the full payout from the deal.
Brand and culture expert Nick Ede told the Mail the Spotify deal’s conclusion was a sign the ‘post-Megxit wave’ the couple were riding is crashing.
‘It looks like Meghan’s brand isn’t such a box office winner and I can see a lot of other businesses following suit,’ he said.
Mr Ede also said the couple will have lost ‘many millions’ from the Spotify deal. He intimated Meghan’s much-talked-about relaunch of her blog and lifestyle brand, The Tig, which she closed down when she got engaged to Harry, is ‘near-certain’, as her options become more limited.
Archewell delivered just one series – 12 episodes of Meghan’s Archetypes show last year on the social stereotypes around women
PR expert Mark Borkowski said the ending of the Spotify contract was ‘bad news’ for Harry and Meghan’s brand and a sign ‘their star is really falling’. He estimated it could cost them up to $10million, or £8million.
Archewell delivered just one series – 12 episodes of Meghan’s Archetypes show last year on the social stereotypes around women – and a 30-minute festive special in 2020 featuring a handful of celebrity friends and their son Archie uttering his first words in public.
Archetypes was an initial ratings success when it was released last summer and talks for a second series were said to be under way before they reportedly stalled. Spotify was said to have paid a staggering £18million to sign the Sussexes up for a ‘multi-year partnership’ after they quit as working royals. The Sussexes highlighted a joint statement from themselves and Spotify saying they had ‘mutually agreed to part ways’.
‘We are proud of the series we made together,’ they added.
Meghan’s talent agency in the US added: ‘Meghan is continuing to develop more content for the Archetypes audience on another platform.’
Sources ‘familiar with the situation’ were also reported as saying Harry and Meghan ‘have wanted to move away from exclusive Spotify distribution to find a new home for their audio projects’.
But the news is an unquestionable dent in the couple’s plans to conquer the US and turn themselves into a billion-dollar brand, if only from a perspective of credibility.
They also bought a £10million mansion in California on the back of their initial commercial conquests, which included their stint with Spotify, and an equally lucrative production deal with Netflix.
Archetypes was an initial ratings success when it was released last summer and talks for a second series were said to be under way before they reportedly stalled
Their six-part tell-all series last year roasting the Royal Family and British media was an undoubted commercial success for Netflix, topping the most-watched charts for weeks.
But the couple have apparently vowed to step away from ‘look back’ projects and focus on producing new and original content.
The only known show, after Meghan’s plan for a cartoon series for children on inspirational female figures was recently canned, is Harry’s Heart Of Invictus series, following his Paralympics-style event for injured service personnel.
Netflix have insisted the series will air this summer, despite rumours it has also been cancelled. Harry is believed to have a role both in front of and behind the camera.
But the couple will no doubt take comfort from the fact that Harry’s memoir, Spare, which laid bare the acrimony of his split from the Royal Family alongside attacks on individual members, was a huge commercial success and is known to be part of a multi-book deal.
The news is an unquestionable dent in the couple’s plans to conquer the US and turn themselves into a billion-dollar brand, if only from a perspective of credibility
The couple will no doubt take comfort from the fact that Harry’s memoir, Spare, which laid bare the acrimony of his split from the Royal Family alongside attacks on individual members, was a huge commercial success and is known to be part of a multi-book deal
Spotify recently announced it would be laying off around 200 staff – nearly 2 per cent of its workforce – from its podcast teams. It cited difficulties in making podcasts profitable, despite their popularity. Speaking to Variety, industry sources stressed the ‘looming end of Archewell Audio’s pact with Spotify is unrelated to the podcast group’s restructuring’.
When they announced the deal in late 2020, Harry and Meghan said they wanted to produce programming that ‘uplifts and entertains audiences around the world’ and ‘build community through shared experience, narrative and values’. But Hollywood is notoriously tough and the bottom line is money, with industry sources saying the Spotify podcast was a ‘scant but expensive return on their investment’.
They also pointed out Meghan had lost several key members of her podcast team, including her head of audio, before a second Archetypes series could be agreed. But Meghan, 41, has recently signed with leading talent agency WME, with plans to focus on building her ‘global enterprise’.
Quite what Harry, 38, is doing is less clear.
He is currently fighting several major legal battles in the UK against various media organisations and the Home Office, and also works as ‘chief impact officer’ for US-based online coaching service, BetterUp.
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