The 2021 Billboard Music Awards (BBMAs) may have packed on the star power with dynamic performances from the likes of BTS, The Weeknd, P!nk, Alicia Keys, and more (as we reported here), but the assembly of hitmakers still wasn’t enough to win Sunday night’s ratings war.
Details inside:
Viewership: 2.8 million
The 2021 BBMAs, which aired live in NBC Sunday (May 23) from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m., may have finished second in primetime ratings for the night (bested only by ABC’s “American Idol” season finale), but the 2.8 million viewers attached to its ratings figure is the lowest in the award show’s history.
Certainly not alone, the year-over-year shrinking viewership is an industry-wide condition experienced by the likes of this year’s GRAMMYs, Golden Globes, Academy Awards, and more (as we reported here).
In the case of the Billboard Awards specifically, the 2021 numbers are even lower than last year’s ceremony – which was delayed until October due to the global health crisis – as it only courted 3.6 million viewers.