‘American Idol’ is #1 social media TV series of 2023; proves it’s still the pop culture phenomenon we can’t stop talking about

Denton Davidson
·3 min read
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“American Idol” made its Season 6 premiere (and 21st overall) on Sunday, February 19, continuing its dominant reign over social media platforms and proving it’s still a cultural phenomenon with unparalleled star-making status. According to Talkwalker Social Content Ratings, the ABC reality TV juggernaut was the number one social media premiere of 2023 so far.

Helping determine who America will ultimately vote for to become the next singing sensation are music industry forces and superstar judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie. Emmy Award-winning host and producer Ryan Seacrest is also back to emcee the beloved competition series.

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SEE ‘American Idol’: Kya Monée auditions with tearful tribute to Willie Spence [WATCH]

With video content racking up over 400 million views worldwide since the premiere, standout talents have propelled not only their own careers, but superstars around them. One such singer was Iam Tongi, whose audition of James Blunt‘s “Monsters” has been viewed over 110 million times and launched Blunt’s track to #2 on the iTunes chart, more than three years after its release in November of 2019. You can see Tongi’s audition below.

The series, which originally launched on FOX in 2002 and turned singers like Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson and Chris Daughtry into award-winning superstars, shows no signs of slowing down. Its first episode on ABC this year outperformed premieres for “RuPaul’s Drag Race” on MTV, “The Last of Us” on HBO, “The Voice” on NBC, “America’s Got Talent: All-Stars” on NBC and other competitive programs, making it the most popular program of the year on social platforms.

In addition to churning out noteworthy talent, this season has also tackled more serious topics like gun violence. Trey Louis belted out “Stone” by Whiskey Myers for his audition before revealing he had survived a school shooting. “Our country has failed us! This is not okay!” Katy screamed in horror.

SEE ‘American Idol’ preview: Olivia Soli proves flattery gets you everywhere by singing Lionel Richie’s ‘Hello’ [WATCH]

Another noteworthy audition was automobile crash survivor Elijah McCormick, who left Lionel in a pool of tears after singing “Bless the Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts. “You hit one of those notes and I thought of Willie [Spence],” the judge explained. “God brought you back nine times for you to do something amazing. That was one of those moments in my life I will never forget.”

As the 2023 season continues, what other viral moments will everyone be talking about? “American Idol” airs Sunday nights on ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT.

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