WME signing backtest ยท Public audience data
Could Radar have found them earlier?
First reported WME signing is the date on the original public story we found that announced the relationship. It is the best public reference point, not necessarily the private contract date.
How Radar gets ahead
We replay the audience data that was available before each first reported WME signing. This shows when Radar could have added an artist to a watchlist, before the public deal story.
This prototype uses a clear rule: at least two audience platforms must move more than usual in the same period, after the artist has reached 5,000 Spotify monthly listeners. It does not claim to be a trained model.
To train Radar properly, we would add WME's actual signing dates and deal scope, then compare the weeks before a signing with similar artists WME did not sign. We would hold back some artists to test whether Radar finds them early without seeing their outcome.
The result is a score designed to put the right artists in front of you sooner, with the audience signals that explain why.