The New Year is only hours away and one of the highlights of the day is Times Square’s iconic ball drop in New York City.
While thousands gather to watch the massive shimmering ball make its 60-second descent down the flagpole and count down to the New Year, millions of others tune into the celebrations live from wherever they are. More than a ton of confetti will also be dropped to celebrate the occasion.
The ball drop tradition at Times Square began in 1907, though New Year’s Eve celebrations at the iconic venue were first held in 1904.
Times Square, on its website, says “this proud tradition is now a universal symbol of the New Year.”
Here’s what to know about the annual Times Square tradition and how to watch the celebrations on CNN and streaming.
How to watch and stream CNN’s NYE special
Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen will return for the eighth consecutive year as co-hosts of CNN’s “New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen” and will host the show live from Times Square.
The show will begin at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 31. Guests include 50 Cent, live from his residency at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Sting, Meghan Trainor, Shania Twain, Diplo, Lil Jon and Patti LaBelle. Comedians Whitney Cummings, Amy Sedaris, Sasheer Zamata, Ziwe and Adam Devine also will be part of the show.
The New Year’s show will be broadcast live on CNN’s TV channel. It will stream live on Max for subscribers and on CNN.com. Pay TV subscribers can also watch on CNN-connected TV and mobile apps.
CNN reporters will also provide live coverage of the celebration throughout the night with Richard Quest reporting live from the crowds in Times Square and inside Madame Tussauds, while Randi Kaye will report from Key West, Florida, Stephanie Elam from Atlantis, Paradise Island in the Bahamas, and Gary Tuchman from Prescott, Arizona.
When is the ball drop?
The Times Square Ball Drop celebration will kick off shortly before 6 p.m. ET on Dec. 31 and the New Year’s Eve Ball will be raised to the top of the pole at One Times Square. At exactly 11:59 p.m. ET, the ball will make its 60-second descent down the flagpole to signal the start of the new year.
The Times Square New Year’s Eve ball is a geodesic sphere covered with 2,688 glass tiles, measuring 12 feet in diameter. It weighs 11,875 pounds and has more than 32,000 LED lights. Times Square says the “ball is capable of displaying a palette of more than 16 million vibrant colors and billions of patterns that creates the spectacular kaleidoscope effect.”
Who is performing?
The Times Square New Year celebrations will include performances by rock legend Lenny Kravitz, Mark Ambor, Grammy-nominated country singer Mickey Guyton, Carrie Underwood, Megan Moroney, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, the Jonas Brothers, TLC, Greeicy, De La Ghetto, Kapo, and the dance group AGNEW among others.
Underwood will perform just before the ball drops at midnight with a medley of some of her biggest hits, followed by Guyton, who then perform the special Times Square New Year tradition of singing John Lennon’s “Imagine” moments before the ball drop.
How to watch Times Square ball drop
While multiple broadcasters will be airing the New Year’s Eve celebrations live on their TV channels and streaming platforms audiences can also catch the live webcast on Times Square’s official website starting 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 31.
“Enjoy commercial-free, webcast coverage of the festivities leading up to the Ball Drop at midnight, including backstage access, behind-the-scenes stories and interviews with performers and other celebrities,” Times Square says on their website.
A livestream with open captions and American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will also be available on YouTube.
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Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.