Meghan Markle’s time as a working royal lasted only a short time. Her experience as a member of the royal family became a nightmare, and her allegations towards the Firm in her and Prince Harry’s now-infamous Oprah Winfrey interview sent shockwaves worldwide.

Now, she and Harry have created a new life in the US. Not long ago, the couple visited Nigeria for a three-day tour, which reportedly infuriated King Charles, Prince William, and Kate Middleton.

While most of their business ventures haven’t been successful since leaving the royal family, Harry and Meghan still have many things going on. Recently, Meghan launched her lifestyle brand, and the first product to be released was a limited collection of jams.

However, the reception to her first product could have been better. A royal expert reveals that the Duchess was left in tears about what was said about it.

When Harry and Meghan decided to leave royal life behind in early 2020, many wondered what they would do next. The couple first went to live in Canada for a short while but later relocated to fashionable Montecito, California.

Prince Harry & Meghan Markle – Business empire

It didn’t take long before the couple began building a business empire. In September 2020, they secured a five-year $100 million production deal with Netflix.

Then there was the four-book deal with their publisher – said to include an eye-watering $20 million advance and global royalties for Harry’s book, Spare – which might be worth more than $120 million. Moreover, Meghan and Harry pocketed an additional $20 million for their Spotify deal. According to an industry expert speaking to Newsweek, the agreement itself could have been worth $35 million when signed.

Meanwhile, Harry and William shared the reported $14 million fortune their mother, Princess Diana, left them. Meghan Markle’s net worth is said to be somewhere around $60 million.

Harry and Meghan’s celebrity lifestyle in Montecito, which includes living in a lavish $14 million mansion, is undoubtedly what many dream of. The Duke and Duchess have been through a lot in recent years but finally appear to have settled into their new life.

Their Netflix series, released in December 2022, was a huge success, and Harry’s book, Spare, as mentioned, sold millions of copies in just a few days. Meanwhile, Meghan Markle embarked on her own Spotify podcast, which seemed hugely promising in its early days.

Meghan’s podcast topped charts for weeks, featuring discussions with several influential women. Guests included Mindy Kaling, Mariah Carey, Trevor Noah, Serena Williams, and Paris Hilton. Despite the success, the two parties decided not to move forward.

Canceled Spotify deal

In June last year, the media group run by Harry and Meghan, Archewell Audio, and streaming giant Spotify announced that they had mutually agreed to end their multi-million dollar contract.

The $20 million contract saw the Duke and Duchess of Sussex produce just one series – Meghan’s podcast Archetypes – since their 2020 agreement.

“Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series that we made together,” the official statement read.

At the time, royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams declared the end of their Spotify deal a “shocking failure.”

“The idea was that several series would be produced. Since only one was, there’s no doubt the contract could be considered a failure. Clearly, this relationship hasn’t been as mutually beneficial,” Fitzwilliams said.

“Losing Spotify is a huge blow. How hard we’ll have to wait and see,” Fitzwilliams added. “The collapse of the Spotify deal puts under the microscope the three deals they’ve got – Netflix and Random House. They’ve done remarkably little for Netflix.”

What really happened when the mutual agreement to end Spotify became public wasn’t known. However, the problem became evident only a short time later.

Bill Simmons, Spotify’s head of podcast innovation and monetization, was unhappy with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s contribution under their contract.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were called “grifters” by Spotify boss

He slammed the couple on his podcast, calling them “grifters.”

“I wish I had been involved in the ‘Meghan and Harry leave Spotify’ negotiation. The Fucking Grifters, that’s the podcast we should have launched with them,” Simmons said on the Bill Simmons podcast.