Meghan Markle's new podcast deal with Lemonada Media, a female-founded podcast network that aims to share ‘the unfiltered version of the human experience,’ is reportedly facing difficulties just a matter of weeks after it was first announced.
The new series, which was first announced by the Duchess of Sussex in February, is reportedly 'struggling to get off the starting blocks' with its release having been pushed back to 2025, according to the Daily Mail.
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It is believed Markle will host the new series and that her old Spotify podcast Archetypes will also be distributed through Lemonada.
The former Suits star, who debuted her lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard earlier this month, released a new portrait to accompany the news of her new deal earlier this year. It was taken by her friend and long-time collaborator Misan Harriman and appeared to honour Princess Diana, the former Princess of Wales, as Markle wore the Cartier Tank Française watch that once belonged to her.
‘I’m proud to now be able to share that I am joining the brilliant team at Lemonada to continue my love of podcasting,’ Markle said in a statement. ‘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. I’m so eager to be able to share it soon and am overjoyed to be joining the Lemonada family.’
The news of Markle's podcast came just a day after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex revealed their re-branded website, which is now a 'one-stop shop' for their work under their charitable umbrellas, the Archewell Foundation and Archewell Productions.
The couple parted ways with Spotify last year after just one series of Archetypes. The pair signed a lucrative deal, which was estimated to be worth around £20 million, with the streaming giant in late 2020 to host and produce podcasts just months after ‘stepping back’ as senior royals and relocating from the UK to California.
Archetypes, which ran for 12 episodes from August 2022, was intended to be an exploration of ‘the labels that try to hold women back.’ The podcast, which was hosted by Markle, saw her interview Serena Williams, Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Amanda Gorman among many others about the ways in which they feel they’ve been typecast. It had a successful first season, too. Two days after its premiere, it was the number-one podcast in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada on Spotify's international charts. At the 2022 People’s Choice Awards, the podcast even won the gong for best pop podcast.
'This is Archetypes – the podcast where we dissect, explore and subvert the labels that try to hold women back,' Markle said in the podcast's episode.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex released their first ever podcast episode in December 2020 and it featured a bevy of famous 'appearances' from the likes of Sir Elton John and James Corden and even an adorable soundbite from their son, Archie.
The ‘2020 holiday special’ was released on December 29 to honour frontline workers and pay tribute to those facing ‘uncertainty and unthinkable loss’ as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
'What we love about podcasting is that it reminds all of us to take a moment and to really listen, to connect to one another without distraction,' Harry and Meghan said in a statement ahead of their first podcasts’ release. 'With the challenges of 2020, there has never been a more important time to do so, because when we hear each other, and hear each other’s stories, we are reminded of how interconnected we all are.'
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