What really went wrong in Prince Harry, Meghan Markle’s Spotify deal

A source close to the couple has finally revealed their side of the story in the Spotify split, claiming they were left on “unsteady footing”.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Picture: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

Sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have lifted the lid on what really went wrong before the collapse of their multimillion-dollar Spotify deal earlier this year.

According to them, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were not set up for success after signing the eye-watering contract in late 2020 and had to deal with an overload of red tape in the months and years that followed.

“They were given no formal lay of the land to kick things off, so they were already on unsteady footing even before the ink was dry,” the insider told People magazine, adding they “have a lot of ideas and did pitch them,” but that “things moved very slowly on both ends.”

The Sussex’s deal with the audio streaming giant – estimated to be worth somewhere between $29 million and $37 million – was declared officially over in a joint statement between both parties in June.

Harry and Meghan’s business ventures have hit a rough patch. Picture: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

Spotify and the couple’s production company, Archewell Audio, insisted they had “mutually agreed to part ways” and were “proud of the series [they] made together” – referring to Meghan’ 13-episode single season of Archetypes.

Despite the outwardly polite split, leaks began to drip from within Spotify, with sources describing Harry and Meghan as “lazy” and others telling Variety that executives had expected more content from their eye-watering deal with the Sussexes.

One Spotify boss, Bill Simmons, even publicly branded them both “f**king grifters” and mocked Harry’s attempts at pitching a solid podcast idea of his own.

“I have got to get drunk one night and tell the story of the Zoom I had with Harry to try and help him with a podcast idea. It’s one of my best stories … F**k them,” he said on his own podcast.

Just weeks later, Spotify sources shared details of Harry’s failed podcast pitches to Bloomberg reporter Ashley Carmen, which allegedly involved him interviewing controversial guests like Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump about their childhoods.

Meghan released just one season of her podcast, Archetypes.

A source close to Harry and Meghan also claimed to People magazine that the pair are being held to a higher standard than others.

“Very few other production companies are measured by what’s actually hit the airwaves,” the source said, explaining that there are “plenty of things that are in different phases” within their company.

A Hollywood insider also told the publication that their high-profile exit from the royal family in 2020 had vastly elevated their perceived commercial value in Hollywood.

“The royal element and, in some ways, the drama around them inflated the price, deals and expectations,” the source told People.

A huge clue about what was to come between Harry and Meghan and Spotify was actually delivered all the way back in April with some very telling remarks by the streaming giant’s CEO, Daniel Ek, who admitted the company had been “overpaying” and “overinvesting”.

“We’re going to be very diligent in how we invest in future content deals,” Ek said on a conference call with financial analysts earlier this year, according to the BBC.

“And the ones that aren’t performing, obviously, we won’t renew. And the ones that are performing, we will obviously look at those on a case-by-case basis on the relative value.”

Last month, it emerged that Harry and Meghan had reportedly told people they feel they’ve been “really unlucky” in their attempts at launching their careers since leaving the UK in early 2020.

An LA source told the Daily Mail they’ve cited Covid-19, economic downturns and the deaths of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II as significantly hampering their efforts.

Since then, and amid reports the output on their $150 million Netflix deal is now being scrutinised, Hollywood has been hit with its first joint writers’ and actors’ strike in 60 years, effectively bringing the industry to a standstill.