Meghan Markle might be channeling girl boss vibes with her new podcast, “Confessions of a Female Founder,” but the numbers don’t lie, and compared to her previous podcast “Archetypes,” she’s not generating the views she needs.
The 43-year-old Duchess of Sussex dropped the debut episode of her podcast on April 8, 2025. The premiere featured her good friend of many years and fellow female entrepreneur, Bumble dating app founder Whitney Wolfe Herd. Despite its highly anticipated release, the podcast didn’t secure a top spot.
In fact, it’s not succeeding at all compared to her “Archetypes” podcast, which dove into the labels and stereotypes that held women back. With hard hitters like Serena Williams, Issa Rae, and Mariah Carey, it was a cultural commentary on how women can redefine or reject the labels that society places on them.
Instead of reaching #1 as she had hoped, the former “Suits” actress had her podcast ranked #10 on the Spotify Top Podcasts chart in the United States. In contrast, “Archetypes” took the top spot back when it was released in 2022. And it’s not just the public that’s unimpressed with Markle’s new venture; critics were just as disappointed, with one reviewer calling the podcast “stomach-turning.”
The criticism includes commentary that, rather than bringing up the hard-hitting questions listeners wanted, she made the conversations all about her own experiences instead of deeply exploring the success story and journey of Whitney Wolfe Herd. She has been accused of doing the same with her Netflix show, “With Love, Meghan.” The Times of London’s columnist James Marriot said he was seized by an urge to beat my head against the wall” after giving the episode a listen. The negative review was scathingly titled “Meghan’s vapid lessons in self-love” and received only one star from Marriott.
Another critic from the Telegraph, Chris Bennion, gave the podcast two stars. Bennion said it was filled with an “inane stream of mindless aphorisms” and was void of having any juicy confessions or secrets, making it more bland than he expected.
In 2022, Markle’s 12-episode podcast “Archetypes,” which is no longer active, briefly topped the charts. However, she lost a hefty chunk of money when she split from Spotify, and the podcast wasn’t renewed. The deal, which was valued at approximately $20 million, was partially retracted since Markle’s Archewell media company didn’t produce enough content to earn the full amount. The podcast was the only work that Meghan and her husband created for Spotify despite partnering for almost three years.
Although Spotify and Markle parting ways first appeared to be amicable, Spotify’s head of global sports strategy, Bill Simmons, boldly called the ex-royals “lazy” and ”f-king grifters.” Simmons added, “I wish I had been involved in the ‘Meghan and Harry leave Spotify’ negotiation. That’s a podcast we should’ve launched with them. I gotta get drunk one night and tell the story of this Zoom I had with Harry to try to help him with a podcast idea. It’s one of my best stories.”
Markle’s new podcast received a poor reception, following “With Love, Meghan,” which was also ruthlessly dragged by viewers and critics alike after its release at the beginning of March.
Many people seem to share the same opinion—that these embarrassing releases, which ultimately flop, are attempts to appear more likable and relatable but instead achieve the opposite effect. Still, she has her defenders. YouTuber Kady Méite has a similarly named YouTube series called “Confessions of a Female Founder.” While Méite appreciated people having her back, she said, “What does concern me is how quickly this is turning into another reason to drag a woman down. That’s not something I want to contribute to. I know firsthand what it feels like to have my work actually copied … this isn’t that.” She added that she doesn’t want to “fuel the already going Meghan hate train.”
Share your thoughts on this issue in the comments below — are you Team Meghan, or are you with her critics?
