Mike Dungan
Mike Dungan has been a Country Music champion for decades, all the while developing top artists and delivering countless hits as a label executive. A Cincinnati native, Dungan got his start in the industry as a teenager working in a record store. In 1979, a label representative noticed Dungan’s potential and helped him land a job with RCA Records promoting pop records in the Midwest. In 1990, Dungan moved to Nashville as head of sales and marketing for Arista Nashville, which quickly evolved from a fledgling label into a multiplatinum powerhouse. Alongside label president Tim DuBois, Dungan nurtured new artists like Brooks & Dunn, Diamond Rio, Alan Jackson, Pam Tillis, and others. He also signed Brad Paisley to the label in 1998.
Upon being appointed president at Capitol Nashville in 2000, Dungan again tapped into a promising group of new artists and guided them into Country stardom. He elevated the careers of Little Big Town, Darius Rucker, and Keith Urban, and brought Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, and Lady Antebellum to the label. In 2012, Dungan joined UMG Nashville as Chairman and CEO, ushering in another lucrative decade with artists like Brothers Osborne, Kacey Musgraves, and Chris Stapleton. The label group continues to thrive with rising stars like Priscilla Block, Jordan Davis, and Parker McCollum. Dungan’s philanthropic efforts have supported entities such as Music Health Alliance, Wounded Warrior Project, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, and Second Harvest Food Bank.