ABC is singing a happy tune as Monday’s ratings roll in. The network’s decision to move American Idol from Los Angeles to Nashville, Tennessee, for Hollywood Week appears to have paid off, drawing the curiosity of music lovers and reality TV fans alike. The shift helped the long-running talent competition deliver its strongest ratings performance since the season premiere, giving the franchise a much-needed surge of momentum at a pivotal point in the competition.
On February 23, American Idol left La La Land behind for the show’s pivotal Hollywood Week and shifted gears to Music City for the first part of Hollywood Week. As 127 contestants prepare to get chopped down to a mere Top 30, the episode earned 5.52 million total viewers and a 0.45 rating among Adults 18-49 in the Live+Same Day ratings, as per Nielsen. This is the best total viewer audience since American Idol‘s season premiere back in January, when it nabbed 6.22 million viewers.
The show rose over the previous week by +16% in total viewers and about +10% among in adults 18-49. In addition to the show’s weekly boost, Idol was also up +27% in total viewers over last season’s Hollywood Week kickoff episode.
Related‘American Idol’: Who Made It Through Night 1 of Hollywood Week?
The episode was not only up from last season’s Hollywood Week installment, but it beat the competition as NBC‘s The Voice drew 3.84 million viewers (though it should be noted that The Voice premiered an hour into Idol’s two-hour episode).
In a statement to the press, the network touted that American Idol “scored its largest margin of victory ever in total viewers over The Voice during its nine-season run on ABC.”
Monday also included the series premiere of NBC’s The Fall & Rise of Reggie Dinkins and the series debut of CBS‘s CIA. According to Nielsen, American Idol‘s stellar performance boosted ABC to a win for the night on broadcast and cable with 4.63 million total viewers.
American Idol, Season 24, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC
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