When Taylor Swift Declined Meghan Markle's Podcast Invitation
The royal family has been seen meeting several global celebrities. Recently, Prince William's meeting with Taylor Swift in London during her Eras Tour concert on Friday became a social media sensation. During the event, William came along with his two children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. However, according to several media reports, Swift had previously declined an opportunity to collaborate with Meghan Markle. The Duchess of Sussex had attempted to persuade Swift to join her on the Archetypes podcast through a "personal letter," as detailed by the Daily Express.
However, Swift's representative declined the request. The podcast, which included interviews with Serena Williams, Mariah Carey, Issa Rae, and others, received accolades such as the People's Choice Award for Top Podcast in 2022 and a Gracie Award for Digital Media in 2023, according to ABC News. Unfortunately, the podcast concluded after Spotify's agreement with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex ended. Daniel Ek was also questioned about the profitability of their partnership. He said, "We thought new innovation was needed to happen here. We thought we can come in and offer a great experience that both makes consumers very happy and allows new creators new avenues.”
As reported by Newsweek, he further said, "And the truth of the matter is some of it has worked, some of it hasn't. We're learning from those and we are moving on and we wish all of the ones we didn't renew with the best of success they can have going forward." Spotify executive Bill Simmons also addressed the company's ties to the Royal Family. He said, "I wish I had been involved in the Meghan and Harry leave Spotify negotiation. 'The F**** Grifters,' that's the podcast we should have launched with them." Since getting dropped, Markle’s show became a major controversy.
Later, Markle teamed up with Lemonada Media to launch a new podcast series next year, after the success of Archetypes. She said, "I'm proud to now be able to share that I am joining the brilliant team at Lemonada to continue my love of podcasting." She added, "Being able to support a female founded company with a roster of thought provoking and highly entertaining podcasts is a fantastic way to kick off 2024. Our plan to re-release Archetypes so that more people can now have access to it, as well as launching a dynamic new podcast are well in the works."
She continued, "I'm so eager to be able to share it soon, and am overjoyed to be joining the Lemonada family." Lemonada’s CEO and co-founder, Jessica Cordova Kramer, also spoke about this. As reported by PEOPLE, she said, "We are beyond honored that Meghan has trusted us to help democratize access to Archetypes and that so many more people around the world will have access to the series soon. Meghan’s talent as host, creator, and conversationalist is unparalleled and we are thrilled to co-create a new series with her that fosters her approach to creating art that matters."
