Phillip Phillips has been crowned the winner for American Idol Season 11, after fans sent in a record breaking 132 million votes, according to Ryan Seacrest. On the other hand, his defeat of Jessica Sanchez is marked with the lowest ratings for an Idol finale ever.
The singing competition show that steadily maintained astronomical TV ratings fell to an all-time low on Wednesday night. However, what is considered “low” is all relative when it comes to American Idol.
According to Fox, the show’s estimated 21.5 million viewers, was the highest viewership of the night, making the finale TV’s most-watched entertainment show since the Oscars were broadcasted back in February.
Wednesday’s show was a big improvement from Idol’s Tuesday performance episode featuring Phillips and Sanchez’ final singing battle. Idol’s final performance episode attracted 14.9 million viewers, down nearly 6 million from last year. The finale fell short by 8 million viewers.
Still the season 11’s finalists, both had a big night on Wednesday. They watched their fellow top 12 contestants perform with classic veterans like Chaka Khan and Neil Diamond, and heard performances by some of the biggest names in music today: Rihanna, Reba McEntire, and Jennifer Lopez.
Both finalists put on impressive performances at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE stage with other legends. Phillips shared the stage with Creedence Clearwater Revival’s John Fogerty to perform “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” and “Bad Moon Rising.” Jessica performed “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” with original Dreamgirls star Jennifer Holliday.
