It’s been five years since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down as working royals and moved to North America.
After spending some time in Canada, the couple settled in California, where they have made a permanent home for themselves and their two children in the posh Santa Barbara neighborhood of Montecito.
But while the Sussexes’ life may seem perfect on the outside, their attempt to re-brand themselves as American media moguls has been met with one setback after another.
Half a decade as Duke and Duchess of California
In fact, the situation has become so bad in recent months that fans and critics alike have begun to speculate that Harry and Meghan will move back to the UK.
It seems as if there are no immediate plans to increase the stake.
But at this point, even the couple’s most ardent defenders are admitting that they’ve faced some serious obstacles on their path to becoming media moguls.
As we approach the first milestone anniversary of the couple’s time in America, Vanity Fair An in-depth look at Harry and Meghan’s half-decade in SoCal. And it’s safe to say that things haven’t gone according to plan.
The outlet did not speak to Harry and Meghan for the article published today. But it interviewed several sources who had worked on media projects with the couple during their years in the US.
podcast flop
One of the Sussexes’ most high-profile failures was the cancellation of Meghan’s podcast after only one season.
Insiders say it looks as if the project was doomed from the start.
“They had this idea to do a podcast because they knew celebrities do that,” a source identified as a former Spotify executive told the outlet. He said Harry and Meghan “didn’t do what celebrities do on podcasts, which is to turn on the mic.” And talk. They wanted a big theme that could explain the world, but they had no idea.
Harry had an idea in which he would interview “sociologists” such as Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Mark Zuckerberg. (Zak probably isn’t thrilled about joining that group!)
“I suffered a very bad trauma in my childhood. obviously. My mother was essentially murdered. What is it about me that hasn’t made me one of these bad people?” Harry reportedly asked.
It was a provocative idea that could not be realized for obvious logical reasons.
And it seems that after that premise failed, Harry opted out of the podcast process.
“I just felt like he didn’t want to be there doing this at this time…. My expectation was ‘attractive receiving line’. And it was clear that he was not that person. At least that day,” says a source.
“Didn’t Spotify pay you a lot of money to do this?” wondered another insider.
“He seems like the kind of guy who, to be honest, would happily work for charity for the rest of his life and would be very happy if Meghan earned all the money and didn’t need it.”
keep up appearances
The most popular modern podcasts have hosts who leave no questions about whether or not they are presenting their authentic self.
They teem with sharp humor and hot takes, and the listener feels more like they’re hanging out with a pot-stirring friend than listening to a spectacular media project. But apparently, Meghan isn’t a fan of that level of candor.
An insider says there were plans for him to say “b-tch” in an episode that would focus on his use of the word.
“You hear it all the time,” the source remembers Meghan saying.
However, in the end, the Duchess played it safe by simply referring to it as the “B-word”.
Another episode was to be titled “Slut” and would focus on a discussion of the ways in which “trans women’s sexuality is used against them.”
The source claims that Meghan decided to name the episode “Human, Being” and that it was “completely reworked at the end of production”.
“Each episode became more and more lame and veered away from real conversation,” the insider says.
A separate source says, “I think the whole world was waiting for him to become that person, and then he never took the leap.” “Diana walked among the landmines. Meghan couldn’t even say the word slut.
Perhaps this is why some people on Spotify feel as if they didn’t get their money’s worth.
Sports media personality and Spotify executive Bill Simmons was particularly harsh in his comments on the situation.
“‘The F–king Grifters.’ This is the podcast we should have launched with them,” Simmons said on his podcast.
“I have to tell this story about getting drunk one night and zooming in on Harry to help him with a podcast idea. This is one of my best stories… F-CK THEM. Grifters.”
Needless to say, it looks like Meghan and Harry won’t be making any more deals with Spotify any time soon.