When the Industry Starts Watching: A Quiet Win for CommonX

Most growth doesn’t announce itself.

It doesn’t come with headlines, press releases, or industry fanfare. It shows up quietly — in data, in behavior, in places most people aren’t looking yet.

Over the past several weeks, Ian Primmer, co-host and co-founder of the CommonX Podcast, has seen a sharp rise on IMDb’s STARmeter, landing at approximately 889,000 globally out of more than 12 million profiles. More importantly, that ranking reflects a massive upward move, with millions of positions climbed in a short period of time and continued month-over-month momentum.

For an independent podcast and media operation with no network backing, no PR firm, and no legacy distribution, that matters.

Not as a trophy — but as a signal.

What this actually represents

IMDb’s STARmeter isn’t about talent or fame. It tracks interest — how often people are searching for a name, clicking into a profile, and engaging with recent work.

People don’t end up there by accident.

They get there because:

• A show keeps surfacing in conversations

• A guest appearance sends them digging deeper

• Clips circulate outside the usual audience

• A name starts appearing in multiple places at once

That’s how attention accumulates before it becomes obvious.

For CommonX, this movement reflects what listeners already know: the show has been steadily building — one conversation, one guest, one episode at a time.

Independent media, measured differently

Legacy media still runs on credentials and gatekeepers. Independent media runs on consistency and gravity. You show up, you publish, and you let the work compound.

Algorithms don’t care who you know.

They care who people look for.

This isn’t the result of a viral moment or manufactured controversy. It’s the byproduct of discipline, volume, and honest conversations that resonate beyond a core audience.

A Curb Fail perspective

At Curb Fail, we don’t celebrate spikes — we document signals.

A ranking doesn’t mean you’ve arrived. It means you’re being noticed. It means something you’re building is registering beyond your immediate circle. That’s usually the point where people either get distracted or double down.

We prefer the second option. CommonX will keep recording. We’ll keep publishing. We’ll keep letting the work speak. This isn’t a victory lap. It’s a checkpoint. And then it’s back to work. Congratulations Jared and Ian!

— Curb Fail Team