Mariah Carey | Heidi Gutman/ABC
Ratings for the primetime portion of ABC’s “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” emerged Monday morning. While they were very impressive, they did not cover the most important part of the show: midnight.
ABC just released data for that portion of the broadcast, and the “impressive” label still stands.
If anything, it is an understatement.
According to a press release from ABC, the 11:30-12:32AM window drew a monstrous 8.2 adults 18-49 rating and averaged 25.6 million overall viewers. The numbers each top those of last year’s broadcast by 26%.
The viewership figure is the best since at least 1991 (the start of the modern ratings era), while the demo number tops that of the 2017 Grammys to rank as the year’s highest-rated music program.
In addition to the midnight ball drop, a performance from Britney Spears’ Las Vegas show and Hollywood performances by Kelly Clarkson and BTS, the 11:30-12:32AM segment included Mariah Carey’s Times Square performance. The set was billed as redemption for last year’s infamous appearance.
— The strong performance continued into 1AM hour. ABC adds that the 1:09-2:07AM window of the broadcast posted a 3.1 adults 18-49 rating and averaged 8.9 million overall viewers.
The numbers were the second-best ever for the 1AM portion, which began airing in 2000.