The 2024 Grammy Awards saw a huge bump in viewership for the first time since the COVID pandemic struck four years earlier.
CBS scored 17 million viewers in final same-day ratings for Sunday’s broadcast of the 66th annual awards show, according to The Hollywood Reporter. It was an increase of 36% over the number of viewers who tuned in to watch the biggest night in music in 2023 when the show attracted 12.55 million viewers.
The awards show was also up by 40% in the coveted 18-49 age demographic compared to last year, the outlet noted.
The numbers on CBS don’t include those who streamed the show on Paramount+, with live viewership up 173% over last year, the network noted in a press release.
#GRAMMYs Ratings Surge For CBS With Big Win For Taylor Swift, Big Performances By Tracy Chapman & Joni Mitchell https://t.co/r73x8We40F
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) February 5, 2024
On Sunday, the night was filled with one surprise after another, including Tracy Chapman returning to the spotlight for the first time in more than a decade to sing her hit song “Fast Car” with country singer Luke Combs, whose more gritty version of the song blew up the charts in 2023.
Miley Cyrus scored not only her first Grammy Award ever but her second as well for her song “Flowers.” It took home Best Pop Solo Performance and then Record of the Year, beating out the likes of Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Taylor Swift, and SZA, The Hollywood Reporter noted.
There was also a surprise appearance from Grammy-winner Celine Dion, who cut her world tour short last year after being diagnosed with Stiff-Person Syndrome (SPS).
The 55-year-old singer, whose rare neurological disease forced her to cancel the remaining tour dates, walked onto the stage to a standing ovation.
“When I say that I’m happy to be here, I really mean it from my heart,” Dion said as she thanked the audience, calling the reception “beautiful.”
“Those who have been blessed enough to be here at the Grammy Awards must never take for granted the tremendous love and joy that music brings to our lives and to people all around the world,” she added. “And now it gives me great joy to present a Grammy Award that two legends, Diana Ross and Sting, presented to me twenty-seven years ago.”
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History was also made when Taylor Swift became the first artist to win Album of the Year four times, this time for “Midnights,” which also won Best Pop Vocal Album.
The jump in Grammy Awards viewership followed that of the 2024 Golden Globes, which also experienced its first spike in the ratings game since 2020, with a 50% increase over last year.