Meghan Markle reportedly penned a personal note to Taylor Swift asking the pop star to be a guest on “Archetypes,” only to be shut down. Swift, 33, rejected the invitation, according to the Wall Street Journal, and didn’t even bother responding herself instead having a representative decline on her behalf in what could be seen as a diss to the Duchess of Sussex.
Any chance at a do-over is off the table now, as Markle, 41, announced earlier this month that she and her husband, Prince Harry, had parted ways with Spotify, which streamed her podcast, just three years after signing a $20 million deal.
An insider told The Post that despite “Archetypes” reaching the top of the charts last year, the couple had not produced enough content to justify the hefty price tag.
In a joint statement, Spotify and Archewell Audio said they “mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series [they] made together.” But finding guests for the former “Suits” star’s podcast wasn’t the only issue.
“Meghan would often ask for changes late in the editing process, at times recruiting senior Spotify executives, including then-chief content officer Dawn Ostroff, to call producers and push them to make changes,” the Journal said in its report Saturday.
Also, Spotify execs reportedly grew annoyed with the amount of time it took Archewell to conceptualize an idea for “Archetypes” and then assemble a production team. Harry, meanwhile, struggled to come up with an idea for a podcast of his own.
The Invictus Games founder, 38, explored the subject of veterans “but couldn’t find a compelling way to tackle the subject in podcast form,” according to the report, which added, “He tossed around subjects such as misinformation and his point of view as someone new to living in America and at one point considered co-hosting a show with comedian Hasan Minhaj.”
Harry also reportedly proposed the idea of interviewing Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, and Mark Zuckerberg about their childhood traumas. The Duke of Sussex’s outlandish concept left execs feeling puzzled, per a previously published Bloomberg article.
An insider claimed the practicality of Harry’s bizarre pitches struck some Spotify employees as “questionable,” considering people like Putin, 70, and Zuckerberg, 39, rarely give interviews about their personal lives.
Since splitting from the company, the California-based royals have been slammed by fellow podcaster Bill Simmons. The sportscaster, who is also head of Spotify’s international sports content, said on his show, “’ The f–king grifters.’ That’s the podcast we shoulda launched with them.”
Simmons also bashed the couple, calling them “lazy” compared to the Obamas, who also had a Spotify contract. The collapse of the deal piles financial pressure on the couple, who stepped down from senior royal duties in January 2020.
Their sprawling Tuscan-style estate in Montecito, which they bought for $14.7 million in June 2020, has a hefty mortgage, and they also spend a reported $2 million a year on security.
In other news – Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson diagnosed with breast cancer
Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, is on the road to recovery after undergoing surgery for breast cancer. A rep for the 63-year-old—an author, ex-wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and mother to Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie—announced the news on June 25.
“Sarah, Duchess of York was recently diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer detected at a routine mammogram screening,” the spokesperson told Sky News in a statement. “She was advised she needed to undergo surgery which has taken place successfully. The Duchess is receiving the best medical care, and her doctors have told her that the prognosis is good. She is now recuperating with her family.”Read More
