CA-SPOTIFY/HIGHER-GROUND
6.6.2019 18:11:10 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground, today announced a partnership with Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) to produce podcasts exclusive to the platform. 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.
Under the Higher Ground partnership, 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. 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.
When President and Mrs. Obama launched Higher Ground in 2018 with an initial partnership with Netflix, their goal was to create compelling content that entertains and inspires viewers. Recognizing that content is consumed in many forms, this new partnership will give them the ability to expand the conversation, educating and engaging Spotify’s diverse and extensive audience.
“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.”
“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,” said Spotify Chief Content Officer, Dawn Ostroff. “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."
About Higher Ground
Higher Ground is a production company formed by President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama dedicated to producing powerful stories to entertain, inform and inspire, and to lifting up new, diverse voices in the entertainment industry. Higher Ground Productions 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.
About Spotify
Spotify transformed music listening forever when we launched in 2008. Our mission is to unlock the potential of human creativity by giving a million creative artists the opportunity to live off their art and billions of fans the opportunity to enjoy and be inspired by these creators. Everything we do is driven by our love for music.
Discover, manage, and share over 50 million tracks for free, or upgrade to Spotify Premium to access exclusive features including offline mode, improved sound quality, Spotify Connect and ad-free listening.
Today, we are the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service with a community of more than 217 million users, including 100 million Spotify Premium subscribers, across 79 markets.
For more information, images, or to contact the press team, please head over to our press page at https://newsroom.spotify.com/ .
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190606005636/en/
Contact:
Public Relations for Spotify: Dustee Jenkins - press@spotify.com
Media Contacts for Higher Ground: FRANK PR - 646.861.0843 Clare Anne Darragh - clareanne@frankpublicity.com Lina Plath - lina@frankpublicity.com
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
From Network Automation to Agentic NetOps: NetBrain Sets the Standard for Deploying AI in Network Operations29.5.2026 15:00:00 CEST | Press release
Newest expansion of the NetBrain platform delivers Agent Skills, AI Path Doctor, MCP Server, and expanded cross-domain integrations, extending the agentic capabilities already running in production at hundreds of enterprises. NetBrain Technologies, Inc. today announced major new platform features that advance Agentic NetOps from an emerging category to operational reality. NetBrain's clients are already deploying agents that are diagnosing and remediating issues across complex multi-vendor enterprise networks. These new features further extend the platform with new agent tooling, cross-domain context, and open interfaces for the broader agentic enterprise. Early customer outcomes show the magnitude of the shift: A leading health insurer used NetBrain's Deep Diagnosis agent to diagnose and resolve a weeks old VPN connectivity issue in under five minutes. A large manufacturer resolved a critical device issue with a single prompt, isolating the root cause across the network path in under
Adtran resolves long-running patent litigation, reinforcing commitment to defend innovation29.5.2026 14:00:00 CEST | Press release
News summary: Non-practicing entity litigation continues to create costly, time-consuming pressure across the technology industry Adtran has reached a full settlement following counterclaims, with payment made to Adtran and all claims dismissed with prejudice Outcome reflects Adtran’s commitment to defend its innovations, customers and business against meritless patent assertions Adtran today announced it has resolved a patent litigation matter, resulting in a full settlement and dismissal of all claims with prejudice. The case, initiated in 2020 by a non-practicing entity asserting five patents, was transferred to the US District Court for the Northern District of Alabama in 2021 following a successful motion by Adtran. Adtran subsequently filed counterclaims, including bad-faith patent assertion under Alabama statutory law. The settlement includes payment to Adtran to resolve its counterclaims. Terms of the agreement remain confidential. “This outcome reflects a disciplined and consi
Meiji Seika Pharma Invests in GHIC’s Global Health Security Fund29.5.2026 13:00:00 CEST | Press release
Meiji Seika Pharma Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan; President and Representative Director: Toshiaki Nagasato) today announced that it has committed to invest in the Global Health Security Fund (GHSF), which is sponsored by Global Health Investment Corporation (GHIC), a New York-based nonprofit organization. Through this investment, Meiji Seika Pharma will support the acceleration of innovations addressing critical global health challenges, including pandemic preparedness and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). GHIC is a mission‑driven nonprofit organization that deploys private investment strategies to generate both global health impact and financial returns. GHIC recently closed its second fund in GHSF. With more than a decade of experience investing in the field of infectious disease, GHIC has contributed to addressing major global health challenges. Its portfolio companies have successfully commercialized more than a dozen products, collectively reaching over 600 million people wo
IFF Enters Into Agreement to Sell Its Food Ingredients Business to CVC29.5.2026 12:50:00 CEST | Press release
Transaction advances portfolio transformation, sharpens focus on higher-growth, higher-margin businesses, strengthens balance sheet, and enhances value creation for shareholders IFF (NYSE: IFF), a global leader in flavors, fragrances, food ingredients, and health and biosciences, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell its Food Ingredients business to funds advised by CVC Capital Partners, a leading global private markets manager, in a transaction that values the business at approximately $4.3 billion, representing an enterprise value-to-EBITDA multiple of approximately 10x. As part of the transaction, IFF has chosen to retain an approximately 10% minority equity interest in the business, or approximately $200 million, permitting continued collaboration and cooperation between IFF and Food Ingredients and allowing IFF and its shareholders to participate in future value creation under its new ownership. The transaction marks a significant step in IFF’s portfolio tr
BeOne Medicines Establishes Standard for Long-Term Disease Control in CLL with BRUKINSA 78-Month Data at ASCO 202629.5.2026 12:00:00 CEST | Press release
Data represents the longest reported follow-up for a next-generation BTK inhibitor in CLL, showing sustained disease control and benefit that extends beyond first-line therapyBRUKINSA plus next-generation BCL2 inhibitor sonrotoclax (ZS) delivered deep, durable, and rapid uMRD responses, raising the bar for potential time-limited treatments in CLLData reinforce BeOne’s leadership in CLL and the strength of its foundational hematology franchise BeOne Medicines Ltd. (Nasdaq: ONC; HKEX: 06160; SSE: 688235), a global oncology company, is advancing the treatment paradigm in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting. With extensive long-term follow-up, the SEQUOIA study of BRUKINSA® (zanubrutinib) reinforces its role as the foundational BTK inhibitor, showing sustained disease control over years of therapy. These findings are further supported by real-world evidence across three large analyses encompassing more than 250,000 pati
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom