Spotify’s head of podcast innovation and monetization Bill Simmons criticized Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, after the couple parted ways with the streaming platform last week.
Markle’s podcast Archetypes was produced by the Duchess of Sussex’s company Archewell Audio, which she co-founded with husband Prince Harry.
Archetypes investigated, dissected and subverted the labels that try to hold women back, according to the show’s description.
In a joint statement to CNN, Spotify and the couple announced the end of their partnership last Friday.
“Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together,” the statement read.
“I wish I had been involved in the ‘Megan and Harry leave Spotify’ negotiation,” Simmons said calling them, “‘The F***ing Grifters.’”
“That’s the podcast we shoulda launched with them,” he continued. “I gotta 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.”
Bill Simmons absolutely HATES Prince Harry
We need to know what Harry said to Bill on that Zoom pic.twitter.com/lsxNoSPaCU
— The r/BillSimmons Podcast (@rBillSimmonsPod) June 16, 2023
“Shoot this guy to the sun. I’m so tired of this guy,” Simmons continued of Prince Harry. “What does he bring to the table? He just whines about s*** and keeps giving interviews. … Who cares about your life? You weren’t even the favorite son.”
“I can’t stand him,” he concluded. “So tired. I’m so embarrassed that I f***ing have to share Spotify with him. The guy sucks.”
The couple’s exit from the streaming service follows Spotify’s decision to cut 2% of the company’s workforce, amounting to 200 positions within their podcasting unit in a “strategic realignment.”
Markle and Prince Harry announced their exclusive partnership with Spotify in December 2020.
According to a press release at the time, the couple would “host and produce podcasts that build community through shared experience, narratives, and values.”
In December 2022, the couple released a six-part documentary entitled Live To Lead with Netflix.
The series featured interviews with notable figures including former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden and late Supreme Court judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
