CBS Scores Second Biggest Grammy Audience of All Time

39 million viewers tune in as industry honors Whitney, Adele

Whitney Houston may have cast a long shadow over the 54th Grammy Awards, but the music community’s response to the singer’s death helped generate huge ratings for CBS.

According to preliminary Nielsen data, Sunday night’s program delivered a whopping 39 million viewers and a 14.1 rating in the 18-49 demo, making it the second most-watched Grammys in history. Only the 1984 installment put up bigger numbers, drawing 51.7 million viewers.

The 26th Grammy Awards came on the heels of Michael Jackson’s monster release Thriller, which spawned seven hit singles and remains the top-selling record of all time.

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