 Before the finale, it was announced that the fifteenth season would be the last of the reality show.Since the series began in 2002 it peaked in viewership at 30 million viewers per episode in 2006, slipping to 20 million viewers per episode in 2011, and down further since with an average of about 9.15 million viewers per episode in 2015.On May 13, Nick Fradiani was announced the winner of the season, with Clark Beckham as runner-up.