Mickey Bunn
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Mickey Bunn was born with music in his blood. His grandmother and great uncle had musical backgrounds.
Bunn started his career through square dancing. He was a member of the Mid-State Square Dancers who won first place at the Mid-south Fair in Memphis, TN. After this, he was a member of The Tennessee Roundups. An automobile accident in 1990 ended Bunn’s professional dancing days. This sparked an interest in music. He was recruited to be the emcee for one of the Grinders Switch Festivals. As a fan of Ricky Staggs, Bunn was drawn to the mandolin. In the early 90’s, he began playing with the Dixie Ramblers. In 2004, Bunn began playing with the Grinders Switch Ensemble on a local radio show, The Grinders Switch Hour, on WNKX in Centerville, TN. The show’s host, Charlie Garner, had encouraged him to join. Bunn had never considered playing with the group because he was the producer of The Grinders Switch Hour. During this time, Charlie Garner knew he was dying of brain cancer, so he asked Bunn to take over hosting the Grinders Switch Hour. Bunn was at first hesitant, but eventually accepted the position. Because of Garner’s passion and commitment to the show’s success, Bunn’s own passion grew. For over 25 years, Bunn worked at WNKX, also known as Kix 96. He began as a part time morning show host. This quickly turned into a full-time position, including Music Director and News Director. In 2012, the owner, Steve Turner, named him General Manager. In 2022, Bunn’s career moved on and he left the radio station. Bunn’s hobbies are well-rounded. He enjoys watching square dancing and clogging. He likes the process of music production, sound mixing and lighting design. He gets great joy watching a production come together. On the other end of the spectrum, he enjoys camping. |