09/16/2026
Heritage Festival Artist Grace Gunn Shares Her Excitement About Performance at the Event
Ken Atkinson
Staff Writer
The Huntingdon Heritage Festival returns Saturday, September 19 with a full day of music, activities, shopping and entertainment.
The free festival begins early with the Heritage Hustle 5K and St. Jude’s Car Show. Vendors open on Court Square at 1 p.m., along with activities including an Andy Griffith Show Marathon at the Court Theatre, Carroll Arts Storytellers, train rides, a kids zone, student artwork at The Dixie Carter Performing Arts Center and the Huntingdon Historical Museum.
The opening ceremony begins at 4 p.m. at the CB&T Main Stage, followed by an evening of live music.
Among this year’s performers is Nashville country singer-songwriter Grace Gunn, who takes the stage from 5:30 to 6 p.m.
For Gunn, the Huntingdon appearance is especially meaningful because she will share the stage with The SteelDrivers, a band with a special connection to her family.
“They mean so much to us,” Gunn said. “We actually played ‘Where Rainbows Never Die’ at my grandfather’s funeral a couple years ago. Me and my brother sang it.”
Gunn said the opportunity to perform at the same festival as the Grammy-winning bluegrass band is something she never expected.
“They hold a really special place in my heart, and I’m so inspired by them and in awe of them,” Gunn said. “So the idea that I’ll get to share a stage with them is just a dream come true for me.”
Gunn’s journey to country music has taken her from Mississippi to California and eventually Tennessee.
Born in Jackson, Mississippi, Gunn moved to Santa Monica, California, at age 11. At 22, she decided to give Nashville a try.
“I gave it a shot and it didn’t take 24 hours for me to realize this is where I needed to be,” Gunn said. “I love the music culture here. I love the collaborative nature of this town.”
Despite her Southern roots, Gunn said she turned away from country music for a time as a teenager in Los Angeles and thought pop music might be her direction.
Country music kept calling her back.
“Country music was always just something that pursued me so heavily,” Gunn said. “Even though when I was younger, I tried to turn my back on it in this way or that, it just kept chasing me.”
Gunn said writing and performing country music now feels natural.
“It feels like something that God put in my life and gave me the opportunity to do,” Gunn said.
Gunn has spent the past several years writing, recording and performing around Nashville, including a recent appearance at The Pinnacle. In July, she released her song “Drinking Alone,” which she said has produced some of the best response she has received so far.
“The feedback I’ve gotten on it has just been incredible,” Gunn said.
She also has more music on the way.
“I’m super excited for the opportunity,” Gunn said. “I got a lot of new music coming, and I hope people will resonate and stick around for more.”
Live music begins at 4:45 p.m. with Mayce Mitchell, followed by Grace Gunn at 5:30 p.m., 24 Seven at 6:30 p.m. and The SteelDrivers at 8 p.m.
