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Spotify has agreed a deal with a comedian accused of calling Britain racist as the streaming giant seeks to reboot its podcast programming following an acrimonious split with the Sussexes.
Trevor Noah will launch a new weekly podcast later this year featuring interviews with famous and influential personalities around the globe.
Mr Noah is best known for his former role as host of US late night talk programme The Daily Show, which airs on Comedy Central.
He has also hosted the Grammy Awards for the last three years and is the author of a New York Times best-selling book.
The South African comedian sparked controversy last year for a skit in which he claimed there had been a racist “backlash” against Rishi Sunak’s appointment as prime minister.
The comments were widely criticised in the UK. Former chancellor Sajid Javid said Mr Noah had been “simply wrong”, while Piers Morgan branded The Daily Show “race-baiting twerps”.
The comedian later defended his comments, insisting he had not claimed that all Britons were racists but only “some people”.
Spotify’s decision to sign a deal with Mr Noah highlights efforts by the Swedish music platform to breathe new life into its ailing podcast business.
Last week, the company ended a reported $20 million (£17 million) podcast deal with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after just one series.
Meghan Markle’s Archetypes podcast featured interviews with high-profile stars including Serena Wiliams and Mariah Carey.
But talks over a second series are said to have stalled and the Duchess will reportedly not be paid out the full sum for the multi-year deal.
A joint statement from Spotify and Archewell, the royal couple’s production business, said the two sides had “mutually agreed to part ways”.
But in a sign of the breakdown in relations, one Spotify boss described the Duke and Duchess as “f------ grifters”.
Bill Simmons, a senior podcasting executive at Spotify, said on his own show last week: “The f------ grifters. That’s the podcast we should have launched with them.
“I’ve got to 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. The grifters.”
Meghan has faced criticism for her contributions to the podcast, including accusations that she did not actually speak to some of the guests, but instead asked a producer to carry out the interviews for her.
The deal with Mr Noah, which was announced during a panel discussion with Spotify boss Daniel Ek at the Cannes Lions Festival, is the streaming service’s first since it emerged that the Sussex contract had ended.