WINNERS ALL: (L-R) Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker of boygenius, pose with their trophies for Best Alternative Music Album, the Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Performance, along with Taylor Swift who won Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album, and Ms. Swift’s long-time collaborator Jack Antonoff, who won for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, backstage during the 66th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 4. —REUTERS/DAVID SWANSON

LOS ANGELES — Taylor Swift’s record-setting night at the Grammys drew the largest audience for music’s highest honors since a pre-pandemic show in 2020, broadcaster CBS said on Monday.

Television viewership averaged roughly 16.9 million people for the three-hour-plus ceremony shown live from Los Angeles, according to Nielsen data released by CBS. That was a 34% jump from last year.

Ms. Swift made history during Sunday’s telecast, winning an unprecedented fourth Album of the Year award with her pop record Midnights, and women swept the major awards. Ms. Swift also used the occasion to announce a new album.

TV viewership for traditional television, and entertainment award shows in particular, has been on the decline in recent years as viewers shift to streaming. Audiences dwindled even more during the constrained awards shows put on during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sunday’s Grammy tally is close to last year’s audience for the Academy Awards, which drew about 18.7 million viewers.

The largest audience on US television every year is the Super Bowl football championship, which typically draws around 100 million viewers.

CBS said live streaming viewership of the Grammys hit a record on Paramount+, jumping 173% from a year ago, but it did not provide the size of the streaming audience. — Reuters

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