Few would-be recording artists have the confidence or wherewithal to enter the mainstream music business on their own terms. The nature of today’s consolidated label structure and clogged mass media channels forces most struggling bands to jump at the first opportunity they see -- if they see one at all.

This hyper-Darwinian environment makes the nine-year saga of newly minted Capitol Nashville recording artists Ryan Shupe & the Rubberband that much more intriguing. And it is an affirmation for all those who still believe in music’s ability to rise above the impossibly long odds offered by the high-stakes recording industry.

Not only did the band, and only the band, play their own instruments on their new Capitol Records CD, Dream Big, they finished the CD – completely – before even stepping foot into a record label conference room. By making their own disc before signing a contract, they never had to adhere to the edicts of record label execs or go through the standard A&R process of choosing label approved songs and producers. They did it on their own and on their own terms.