A top executive at steaming giant Spotify has slammed Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as “f**king grifters” after parting ways with the royal couple.
Earlier this week, Spotify announced that it had cut ties with the Sussexes and canceled Markle’s podcast show “Archetypes.”
“Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together,” a statement said.
The pair’s podcast production company, Archewell Audio, had a lucrative multi-year partnership with Spotify.
The deal was expected to include multiple programs.
However, the arrangement has been massively underwhelming and failed to produce the numbers Spotify was expecting.
Since signing a deal with Spotify in December 2020, Archewell Audio has only produced a single holiday special and one series, Markle’s show “Archetypes.”
“Archetypes” didn’t premiere until August 2022, and only lasted 12 episodes.
The Spotify deal was reportedly worth around $20 million and the Sussexes produced nothing for almost two years.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the couple would not receive the entire $20 million payout from the Spotify deal, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The couple did not produce enough content to receive the full payout, sources reportedly told the New York Post.
On Friday, Bill Simmons, head of podcast innovation and monetization at Spotify, slammed Harry and Megan as “f***ing grifters.”
“I wish I had been involved in the ‘Meghan and Harry leave Spotify’ negotiation,” Simmons said on “The Bill Simmons Podcast.”
“The f***ing grifters,” he blasted.
“That’s the podcast that we should’ve launched with them.”
Simmons claimed that he had a video call with Prince Harry, saying:
“I gotta get drunk one night and tell the story of the Zoom I had with Harry to try to help him with podcast ideas. The grifters.”
Representatives for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex didn’t respond to a request for comment by Insider.
Simmons previously unloaded on Prince Harry during his podcast in January.
“Shoot this guy to the sun,” Simmons said of Harry.
“I’m so tired of this guy.
“What does he bring to the table?
“He just whines about s**t and keeps giving interviews.
“Who gives a s**t? Who cares about your life?
“You weren’t even the favorite son.
“The other guy was the king, you’re like the f**king Fredo. F**k you.”
“Nobody cares about this,” Simmons declared.
“He had like an eight-episode Netflix show – what did we find out?”
“I can’t stand him. So tired.
“I’m so embarrassed that I f**king have to share Spotify with him, the guy sucks,” he ranted.
“It’s embarrassing that he’s on our platform.”
Simmons continued to trash Prince Harry, “What does he do? What’s your talent? Why are we listening to you?
“So you were born into the royal family and then you left. What are you good at?”
“You live in f**king Montecito, and you just sell documentaries and podcasts, and nobody cares what you have to say about anything unless you talk about the royal family, and you just complain about them,” Simmons continued.
“He’s got a book? What did he write a book about? Honestly, he’s the worst.”
LISTEN:
Bill Simmons losing his shit over prince harry gotta be one of the most random things I’ll hear all week pic.twitter.com/aS9kB9fD9y
— Elyes إلياس (@_sillyilly) January 9, 2023
In May 2022, Netflix canceled Markle’s animated series titled “Pearl” before it aired a single episode.
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