President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground, has announced a partnership with Spotify to produce podcasts exclusive to the platform.
President Obama said: “Podcasts… bring us all a little closer together.”
The Obamas formed Higher Ground to produce powerful stories to entertain, inform and inspire, and to lift up new, diverse voices in the entertainment industry. Spotify, which recently surpassed 100 million Premium subscribers and has more than 217 million monthly active users, will distribute the podcasts to audiences across the globe.
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Under the Higher Ground partnership, the Obamas will develop, produce, and lend their voices to select podcasts, connecting them to listeners around the world on wide-ranging topics. The multi-year agreement will be with Higher Ground Audio, an expansion of the Higher Ground production company that will oversee the move into podcasts.
The Obamas launched Higher Ground in 2018 with an initial partnership with Netflix. Higher Ground Productions now has a multi-year deal with Netflix to produce a wide range of scripted, unscripted and documentary-style series, as well as feature-length narrative and documentary films. Higher Ground Audio has a multi-year deal with Spotify to produce a diverse slate of original podcasts
“We’ve always believed in the value of entertaining, thought-provoking conversation,” President Obama said. “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.”
“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,” Michelle Obama said. “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.”
For more information, visit: https://newsroom.spotify.com
