<P> Empire is an American musical drama television series which debuted on Fox on January 7, 2015 . The show centers around a hip hop music and Entertainment Company, Empire Entertainment, and the drama among the members of the founders' family as they fight for control of the company . The series was created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, and stars Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson . </P> <P> The series was renewed for a third season, which premiered on September 21, 2016 . As of May 24, 2017, 48 episodes of Empire have aired, concluding the third season . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> Season </Th> <Th_colspan="2"> Episodes </Th> <Th_colspan="2"> Originally aired </Th> <Th_colspan="2"> Nielsen ratings </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> First aired </Th> <Th> Last aired </Th> <Th> Rank </Th> <Th> Viewers (millions) </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> </Td> <Td_colspan="2"> 12 </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> January 7, 2015 (2015 - 01 - 07) </Td> <Td> March 18, 2015 (2015 - 03 - 18) </Td> <Td> 5 </Td> <Td> 17.33 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> </Td> <Td_colspan="2"> 18 </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> September 23, 2015 (2015 - 09 - 23) </Td> <Td> May 18, 2016 (2016 - 05 - 18) </Td> <Td> 5 </Td> <Td> 15.94 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> </Td> <Td_colspan="2"> 18 </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> September 21, 2016 (2016 - 09 - 21) </Td> <Td> May 24, 2017 (2017 - 05 - 24) </Td> <Td> 23 </Td> <Td> 10.37 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> </Td> <Td_colspan="2"> 18 </Td> <Td_colspan="1"> September 27, 2017 (2017 - 09 - 27) </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> Season </Th> <Th_colspan="2"> Episodes </Th> <Th_colspan="2"> Originally aired </Th> <Th_colspan="2"> Nielsen ratings </Th> </Tr>

How many episodes are in empire season 4