[SPOILER] Last night, NBC aired the third season finale of The Sing-Off and crowned the winners of the a capella competition. Pentatonix, a five-person ensemble from Arlington, Texas, took home a Sony recording contract and $200,000. Will there be more winners and a fourth season of The Sing-Off or, will the TV series be cancelled instead?
Hosted by Nick Lachey, The Sing-Off began as a short-run series with just four episodes in December of 2009. It did reasonably well (a 2.3 in the 18-49 demographic with 6.9 million viewers) and was cheap to produce so the peacock network brought it back for season two. It returned the following December and was expanded to five episodes. That renewal paid off and the ratings rose 26%, to an average of a 2.9 in the demo with 8.6 million viewers.
NBC decided to take another chance and give The Sing-Off a two-hour timeslot on the fall schedule and 11 episodes. That gamble didn’t pay off and the ratings have been terrible.
The Sing-Off began this season with a disappointing 1.9 rating in the demographic with 5.3 million viewers. The numbers never got any better they dropped as low as a 1.3 rating, less than half of its worst demo rating last season. The show’s consistently been in fourth place in its timeslot and has lost 40% in the demo season-to-season.
The reality competition is the second-highest non-scripted show on the network but, given the state of the rest of NBC’s schedule, that’s not saying much.
Will NBC cancel The Sing Off? If the network were in better shape, of course they would. As things are, I suspect NBC will bring it back for another season but give it either a summer or holiday run, when competition and expectations are far lower.
In retrospect, they probably shouldn’t have messed with the success they’d been having with it.
But, what do you think? Should Sing-Off return for another season or are you done with it?
Image courtesy NBC.
I really hope NBC brings the Sing Off back. It was by far, the best vocal show aired and incredibly enjoyable in every way. Such amazing talent and the judges critiques were always well done with a mix of praise and respectful constuctive criticism. I loved everything about this show.
Tom
Pleassssssse bring The Sing Off back for a 4th season!!!!!!! I absolutely LOVE it !! My whole family watches it and we’ve been waiting to see when the next season will start!!
i know every one thinks the same this show out shines xfactor/american idol/,why would you cancel this good singing show.why dont you try promototingb it a lot more like american idol and the other show.please very good show.i pray you keep in on with the same cast.they are very nice and speak so well
I love the sing off and I hope that it continues because it is an AMAZING SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love it so much and there is so much talent in the US and this also shows group talent. That their are still people out there that are so good that they don’t even need instrumentals or machines to show off their talent. I pray that The Sing Off stays because it is to good of a show to not continue.!!!! Hope hope it gets big like American Idol or The X Factor!!!
PLEASE!!!!! Return the show!!!!!!!! PLEASE! I just love it! I don’t know why the ratings are so low but I think its a great reality show full of pure talent!
I do not watch reality shows of any kind but this show grabbed me from the start. Season three was a let down from Season 2 but that is probably because the contestants in season 2 were so amazing. Season 3 got better as it went along and it was actually compelling to see the groups mature and grow with each episode. I am actually excited to see season 4 and for me, that is unusual. This is the best show I have seen in a long time for real talent. We need more shows like this and less shows… Read more »
I totally agree!!! This is one of the best reality shows that is close wholesome for all ages to watch… Jersey Shore, Bad Girls, Any Real Housewives are all a joke and a disgrace! This show shows TRUE talent, extreme hardwork, and what it means to be a group!
Hey, I just found ‘The Sing Off’ mid way through season 3 and I loved it. I would really like to see it come back for a fourth season so I can follow it from the start! What a neat concept for reality…..talent and creativity not sex and stupidity!!
I love this show and have turned a lot of people on to it. It’s got a great spirit, is positive, uplifting, not hokey, sleazy, or fakey, which may be why it’s less popular than some other reality competitions. Give it a chance, promote it more, and make it the success it deserves to be.
I sincerely hope The Sing Off is renewed. Never have I looked forward to Monday nights as much as I did this past season. These groups are extremely talented, and it was nice to see that talent acknowledged in prime-time. The hosts are pleasant and funny and never mean. Their criticism is genuinely intended to help the groups improve, and you can see how it works as the season progresses. Please don’t cancel this worthwhile series!
I like music, but cannot consider myself a music lover, nor can I sing… Having said that, I caught a glimpse of “The Sing Off” while flipping through the channels and could not tear myself away. I was hooked. I looked forward to watching Every Monday night. Entertainment through TV is rapidly dying, and finding The Sing Off was refreshing. No mean, hurtful criticism, just constructive criticism. By the way, Pentatonix was unbelievable. They have a bright future. PLEASE keep the sing-off in the line up. I also have to mention, I love the judge trio, Shawn Stockman, Sarah Bereilles… Read more »
I love acapella and the Sing Off introduced some really outstanding groups. I hope it can come back.
I can actually understand why season 3’s ratings went down. Two hours is too long of a show. Plus, I think eliminating four groups after one performance might have made some viewers lose interest. Third, it had to compete with shows like Two and a Half Men. I love the show. i think if you cut the show to an hour, maybe use 12 groups instead of 16, and let every group perform a least twice, that would help. Plus, maybe you can have a guest judge every week who could perform the opening number each week.
As a singer I really enjoyed the show, I didn’t always agree with who they eliminated, but I never stopped watching, and looked forward to GOOD singing. Unlike some of the other ” singing” shows, this one sounded good from the start. Some of the others I can’t listen to until the final stages. BRING IT BACK!!!!
I do not understand how the ratings could have possibly decreased for the third season. Any music lover, such as myself, would agree that the talent in The Sing Off, is phenomenal. Singing a capella is incredibly difficult since you do not have a single instrument to help you stay on key or on beat. Additionally, singing while you dance?! That makes it so much more harder for them but at the same time entertaining for the viewers. I personally thought the third season was by far the greatest of all 3. There were more episodes and it lasted longer.… Read more »
this show was great.. please renew it for another season. great entertainment for the family. the last season was great love the 2hr slot plus how many episodes NBC had keep it