Obamas Ink Spotify Podcast Pact

• Former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama and their production company, Higher Ground, have inked a deal with Spotify to produce an exclusive series of podcasts. The multi-year agreement is with Higher Ground Audio, an expansion of the Higher Ground production company that will oversee the move into podcasts. Under the terms of the pact, President and Mrs. Obama will develop, produce, and lend their voices to select podcasts, connecting them to listeners around the world on wide-ranging topics. Spotify will distribute the Obamas’ podcasts worldwide to its paid and ad-supported user base. Spotify recently surpassed 100 million Premium subscribers and has more than 217 million monthly active users around the world.

“We’ve always believed in the value of entertaining, thought-provoking conversation,” said President Obama. “It helps us build connections with each other and open ourselves up to new ideas. We’re excited about Higher Ground Audio because podcasts offer an extraordinary opportunity to foster productive dialogue, make people smile and make people think, and, hopefully, bring us all a little closer together.”

Michelle Obama remarked, “We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to amplify voices that are too often ignored or silenced altogether, and through Spotify, we can share those stories with the world. Our hope is that through compelling, inspirational storytelling, Higher Ground Audio will not only produce engaging podcasts, but help people connect emotionally and open up their minds — and their hearts.”

Dawn Ostroff, Spotify’s Chief Content Officer, commented, “President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are two of the world’s most important voices and it is a privilege to be working with them to identify and share stories that will inspire our global audience, which looks to Spotify for unique, breakthrough content.” She added, “Connecting people with original and thoughtful creators — especially those with the ability to highlight underrepresented and indispensable narratives — is at the core of our mission and we are thrilled that not only will the Obamas be producing content, but that they will be lending their voices to this effort.” The companies didn’t provide details on specific projects the Obamas may be planning at this point, but Spotify did say that the programming would encompass “a diverse slate of original podcasts.”