Tell Us Your Story

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Cuéntanos Tu Historia

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Ikuwento Mo Ang Iyong Kwento

Tell Us Your Story ~ Cuéntanos Tu Historia ~ Ikuwento Mo Ang Iyong Kwento

Tell Us Your Story Cuéntanos Tu Historia

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FAQ

The World Famous VIP Records sign has always belonged to this community. This website is where you can follow every step of making that happen; it is your space to stay connected, share your voice, and follow along as we work together to bring the iconic VIP Records sign home and build something worthy of the East Side Long Beach community that made it legendary.

Here is your living resource for the VIP Records Historic Sign Restoration & Placemaking Project. Built with the Anderson family. Built for East Long Beach.

This project is grounded in a simple belief: that the World Famous VIP Records sign and the community it represents have always deserved this recognition. East Long Beach, and the PCH corridor in particular, is a neighborhood rich in cultural history and short on

the public investment that history warrants. There is currently no green space along this stretch of PCH. This project is a step toward changing that, and toward building something that genuinely reflects the people who live here.

We are committed to designing a space that acknowledges and celebrates African American contributions to Long Beach, to music, and to this city's identity. Our mission is to strive for a process that centers the Anderson family and the community as co-designers, not as recipients of someone else's vision. And we are here to bring you along the process every step of the way, because this community has earned the right to know exactly what is being built, why, and for whom.

This corner has always been yours. This project is about proving that to you…

  • “I would like to see emphasis on the community impact that V.I.P. has contributed to Long Beach and the world.”

  • “It should be recognized as an African American landmark for the city, seeing the icons and all that have flourished or been inspired from it.”

  • “I want it to celebrate local music icons. I want a space for free hip hop / dance lessons. I want lots of trees so the temperature is bearable in the summer.”

  • “A safe place and true acknowledgment of African Americans’ contribution and importance within our city.”

  • "I wanna make sure that the space honors VIP"

    — Tenisha Anderson

  • "Celebrating the history of Black people in Long Beach through VIP Records."

  • "Both Anderson Brothers — side by side in front of any and all celebrities — plus a Mississippi flag on one end and a California flag on the other, representing the migration from the South to the West."

The Vision for This Corner

At the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Martin Luther King Avenue in East Long Beach sits a 9,000 square foot lot that is about to become something the neighborhood has long deserved. The City of Long Beach has secured this site as the temporary home of the World Famous VIP Records sign: a city-designated historic landmark and one of the most recognizable symbols of Black culture and music history in Southern California.

This project is two things at once:

  1. The first is the full restoration and reinstallation of the iconic VIP Records sign, returning it to its rightful place in the community after years in storage.

  2. The transformation of the corner lot itself into a public gathering space that honors the legacy of VIP Records, the Anderson family, and the East Side Long Beach community that built its story.

Both efforts are being shaped by the people who know this corner best. Community members, longtime neighbors, artists, musicians, and most importantly, the Anderson family are all co-designers of this process. What gets built here will reflect what this community has always known: that VIP Records was never just a store.

Join us at an upcoming event!

Únanse a nosotros en nuestros próximos eventos comunitarios

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