Meghan Markle discusses her Spotify podcast series 'Archetypes'

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Meghan Markle, 41, has released a new Archetypes episode entitled: “To ‘B’ or not to ‘B'”, which features two more close friends, one of which is Mellody Hobson. Ms Hobson is the chairwoman of Starbucks who opened up to the Duchess of Sussex about her “unconventional” childhood.

Mellody, according to Meghan, was “the youngest of six children raised by a strong single mother in Chicago in the 70s and 80s”.

The chairwoman commented: “My mum was very unique, she gave me the hard truths of life with so much love and support, but she never wanted me to go through life not being prepared for all that would come.

“So she taught me what to expect as a Black woman and a Black person and I really do appreciate that aspect of her, I call it brutal pragmatism, but with so much love she was devoted to me and to my siblings.

“She struggled a lot to make ends meet so as a result of that we had a very uneven and oftentimes challenging existence where we would get evicted or our phone would get disconnected or our lights would be turned off, or our cars would be repossessed. I remember my mum borrowing gas from the gas station to get me to school.”

According to Meghan, Ms Hobson had “learned how to be self-sufficient” as a child, which was “underscored by her mother’s unconventional parenting style”.

Mellody shared an anecdote from her childhood about her mother’s parenting technique, which impressed the Duchess.

Ms Hobson said: “I joke with people, this is true, I found my own orthodontist – I went to the appointment by myself I had these horrible teeth. I asked all of my friends who their orthodontist was and I called and made an appointment because I had these fangs that stuck up on top, it was so awful, even I knew I couldn’t go through life like that!

“So I went to the orthodontist alone at like, how old are you in sixth grade, about 12? The orthodontist see’s me and he’s like, ‘You know you need braces,’ explaining all of this to me, Dr Thompson was his name.

“After he told me everything, he told me it was $2,500. He’s telling this to a 12-year-old, which shows how special he was I have to say! So he says it’s $2,500 and I said, ‘We don’t have that kind of money,’ and he gave me a payment plan.

“He gave me a little booklet and then I went home and told my mum and explained the whole thing to her and I went back and got braces. But my mum wasn’t surprised, it was like, you know, of course she did!

“But it wasn’t like I was thrown to the wind, it was just like, if I wanted to do things I had to figure it out every time. Just like something as simple as going to a birthday party, if I wanted to go to a birthday party, my mum would say, ‘How are you going to get there? How are you going to get home? What are you going to do about a present?’

“I knew I had to come prepared with all of those answers or I couldn’t go.”

Meghan responded while laughing: “I have to rethink my parenting style! Because if that’s what yields you, then I really [gotta] up my game with our kids being self-sufficient.”

Parenting expert Angela Karanja, the founder of Raising Remarkable Teenagers, spoke to Express.co.uk about whether or not Meghan is a “strict” mother.

She said: “I doubt Meghan and Harry will condition Archie to strictly follow formal meals behaviour like his cousins. I’m sure they teach Archie and Lilibet reasonable table manners, but not to the extent they demand them to be quiet and still whilst eating, which is counterintuitive to a child’s instincts.

“Also in some of Meghan’s pre-marriage pictures, the Duchess is shown with her friend Jessica Mulroney’s daughter Ivy, pictured eating in bed on a lap tray watching something. So, going by how she treats her friend’s daughter you can see her desire to model freedom and self-expression.

“Archie will most likely be encouraged to have freedom by himself without some of the acquired mechanical habits that royal children have to follow. I bet some of his cousins will be like, ‘I wish I had the freedom to do what I want just like him’.

“I don’t think Meghan or Harry will be strict in the actual sense of things. I believe they will allow Archie and his sister to have freedom accompanied by firm and fair boundaries. Although they both grew up in different settings, they both undoubtedly understand the developmental damage that strictness can have on children’s psychological wellness.

“They may be strict with outside interference, not necessarily with Archie. I think from Harry having found himself later in life and understanding the freedom that comes with being able to freely express yourself, your authenticity and vulnerabilities and the benefits of this as a person, I believe he will want that for his children.

“Having met his match Meghan who is able to express herself authentically, I believe they want that for their children.”

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