Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Spotify deal unravels after just one show

Spotify and Archewell Audio, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s podcast production company, have ended a commercial partnership after the couple delivered only a single episode. 

“Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together,” Spotify and Archewell Audio said in a joint statement to CBS MoneyWatch Friday, without elaborating on why they decided to pull the plug.

The deal ends less than a year after Markle’s debut podcast, “Archetypes,” first aired. The segment dug into “the labels that try to hold women back,” according to its description on the platform, with Markle’s guests including Serena Williams, Mariah Carey and Mindy Kaling. 

At the time, Dawn Ostroff, Spotify’s chief content and advertising business officer, called Prince Harry and Meghan “citizens of the world,” celebrating their goal of uplifting underrepresented voices in their work.

Spotify first announced what it called an exclusive “multiyear partnership” with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex in December of 2020 focused on producing podcasts and shows that share “uplifting and entertaining stories” with the streaming platform’s massive audience.

Harry and Meghan also have a multiyear deal with Netflix to produce children’s programming, documentaries, feature films and scripted shows. 

The pair relinquished their royal duties in 2020, cutting them off from the British Crown’s estimated $34 billion estate. Forbes last year pegged their net worth at $10 million, including Harry’s inheritance from his mother, Princess Diana, and the equity the couple have in their California mansion.