2018 American Music Awards Ratings Collapse

Cardi B Performs at American Music Awards on Oct. 9, 2018. (Credit: YouTube)

The American Music Awards weren’t exactly a chart-topper with television viewers.

A total 6.5 million viewers tuned in to Tuesday night’s broadcast on ABC, with the show drawing a 1.8 rating in the coveted adults 18-49 demo, according to Variety.

Those numbers marked a 29 percent decline in viewers and a 25 percent drop in the demo compared to 2017, when the show garnered 9.2 million viewers and a 2.4 rating. All tallied, Tuesday night’s AMAs set an all-time Nielsen ratings low for the decades-old program.

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In 2016 and 2017, the broadcast set previous demo lows. This year’s broadcast may have been hurt even more by a move from Sunday to a weekday.

Black-ish actress Tracee Ellis Ross hosted the AMAs for the second straight year.

Tuesday’s three-hour broadcast from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles featured performances by some of the hottest acts in music, including Cardi B, Taylor Swift, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez, Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello. There was also an all-star tribute to the late Aretha Franklin led by Gladys Knight.

The American Music Awards aren’t the only music awards show to suffer serious ratings declines this year.

In August, the MTV Video Music Awards drew its lowest numbers ever.

Meanwhile in February, viewership for the Grammy Awards tumbled double digits.