Trevor Noah inks deal with Spotify for new weekly podcast

Trevor Noah announced his partnership with Spotify during a conversation with Spotify co-founder and CEO Daniel Ek at Spotify Beach from the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity in France on Tuesday. The comedian will be hosting his own podcast set to premiere later this year.

"Trevor Noah is one of the most successful comedians in the world and author of the New York Times best-seller "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood." Now he's bringing his sharp insights to the world of audio with his new Spotify Original Podcast," the audio streamer announced in a statement posted on its newsroom.

The former "Daily Show" host shared his excitement to be joining Spotify in a statement: "It's really exciting to be joining Spotify on a fun new adventure where we'll engage in interesting and meaningful conversations with some of the world's most fascinating people. We'll also probably fix every single issue humankind has ever faced, so you definitely want to join us for every episode."

Meanwhile, Julie McNamara, Spotify VP, Head of Global Podcast Studios, also looked forward to hearing from Noah on his new podcast. She said, "Spotify is the ultimate audio destination, and partnering with Trevor Noah, one of the world's most brilliant and distinctive voices, will make for captivating storytelling that will delight our more than 100 million podcast listeners around the world."

She teased that his still-untitled original weekly podcast will seamlessly "combine his unique humor, insightful commentary, and consummate interview skills on a global scale." According to Spotify, the new programme will "blend Trevor's signature humor and razor-sharp wit with his global perspective to deliver a unique take on the hottest and most captivating topics of the moment."

The series will also include "in-depth and freewheeling conversations between Trevor and some of the most influential and interesting figures around the world. The new original series will be available on numerous platforms and sees Trevor joining Spotify alongside many of the most popular podcast creators in the world including Alex Cooper, Louis Theroux, Emma Chamberlain, Dax Shepard, Markiplier, Drew Afualo, Lena Situations, and more."

In addition to his announcement, Noah also discussed with Ek the "different mediums to forge a deeper connection with the audiences." Likewise, they talked about how "creators can effectively leverage new technologies in an ever-evolving media landscape."

Similarly, the 2023 Grammy Awards host announced his new Spotify weekly podcast in a video posted on his Twitter page. "Really exciting news. We're launching a new podcast and it's going to be global, which means if you are in the world, you're probably watching this video, which means you can listen to the podcast," he says adding, "If you're in space I believe they have internet there too. They just got Wi-Fi so you can also listen to the podcast....add me to your playlist."

Details about the weekly podcast remain scarce. But the deal comes following news that the streamer laid off 200 of its employees, mostly from the podcasting division, because it is reportedly undergoing reconstruction.

Moreover, Noah's new podcast announcement comes following confirmation that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Archewell Audio has parted ways with Spotify after three years together. In those years, they only released a holiday special that had Elton John and James Corden as guests and the "Archetypes" podcast. The Duchess of Sussex hosted the 12-episode series which invited high-profile guests including Serena Williams, Paris Hilton, Mariah Carey, Mindy Kaling, Sophie Trudeau, and more. The comedian was also among the male guests invited on the final episode along with Andy Cohen and Judd Apatow, in which they discussed the stereotypes that hold women back.