After many years, the iconic World Famous VIP Records sign will finally return to public display in Central Long Beach.
The City Council unanimously approved a contract with World Famous VIP Records and its owner, Kelvin Anderson, this week to refurbish, license and publicly display the historic sign.
The current identified location to display the sign will be on the southwest corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, according to a staff report. The site is slated to be named “The VIP Records Park,” though the request must to the city’s Government Operations and Efficiency Committee for study and subsequent recommendations to the City Council.
“Before folks have heard about Long Beach, one of the first things they’ve heard about is some of the culture that’s been shaped with the legacy of VIP Records,” Mayor Rex Richardson said during the Tuesday, Jan. 6, council meeting, “and all of the global culture that has come out of that.
“Tonight, we have an opportunity to protect and showcase an important cultural asset,” Richardson added, “to partner with a local business, because VIP Records still exists today and is still operating today, to support them while also enriching our own cultural tapestry and creating a landmark as the world prepares to come to Long Beach.”
This collaboration between the city and the iconic record store comes at a time when Long Beach is investing in different sectors for economic growth through its Grow Long Beach initiative – which includes investing in arts, culture and entertainment as the city prepares for global events in the Los Angeles area — including the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics.
The iconic record store, 1028 Pacific Coast Highway, has also continued its work to fulfill a vision of a museum and educational center at VIP Records that would honor the artists and music that shaped a generation while creating a dynamic space for education, community engagement and cultural preservation.
“VIP Records has been a meaningful part of Long Beach’s cultural and creative identity since opening in 1978,” Teresa Chandler, deputy city manager, said during the meeting. “More than a record store, it became a place where young people could explore music, creativity, and self-expression, and where local talent found mentorship and opportunity under the leadership of Kelvin Anderson and his family.”
By the early 1990s, it had evolved into a launchpad for aspiring local artists, providing a record store and a recording studio. Anderson played a pivotal role in shaping this musical legacy by investing in recording equipment and creating a small studio and stage inside the store, according to the staff report. With guidance from acclaimed record producer Sir Jinx, the studio became a creative hub for emerging talent.
During the 1980s and 1990s, with gang violence escalating in the area, Anderson opened VIP Records as a safe space for local youth, offering them an alternative to the streets through music, the staff report said. Among the artists who recorded at VIP Records were Warren G and Snoop Dogg.
In 2017, the City Council made an agreement with VIP Records to remove, restore and temporarily store the iconic sign, and to designate it as a historic landmark. In 2018, the sign was taken down when the building was repurposed for another business. That same year, the city designated the VIP Records sign as a Long Beach Historical Landmark.
VIP Records owner Kelvin Anderson poses for a photograph at the World Famous VIP Records in Long Beach on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram/SCNG)
From left, Tenisha Anderson and Latasha Anderson pose for a photograph with their father Kelvin Anderson at the World Famous VIP Records in Long Beach on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram/SCNG)
VIP Records at Long Beach’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Parade on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Photo by Christina Merino, Press-Telegram/SCNG)
From left to right, Mayor Robert Garcia, VIP records owner Kelvin Anderson, VIP Records founder Cletus Anderson and Long Beach Sixth District Long Beach City Councilman Dee Andrews, as Mayor Robert Garcia presented a proclamation to brothers Kelvin and Cletus Anderson for their contributions to the city of Long Beach. Cletus opened VIP Records in 1978 and his brother Kelvin took over the business the following year. The VIP Records sign, located at 1014 E. Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach, was declared a historic landmark this week. Long Beach Calif., Thursday, December 21, 2017.
( Photo by Stephen Carr, Daily Breeze / SCNG )
Mayor Robert Garcia,left, is presented a proclamation to brothers Kelvin Anderson,center, and Cletus Anderson for their contributions to the city of Long Beach. Cletus opened VIP Records in 1978 and his brother Kelvin took over the business the following year. The VIP Records sign, located at 1014 E. Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach,was declared a historic landmark this week. Long Beach Calif., Thursday, December 21, 2017.
( Photo by Stephen Carr, Daily Breeze / SCNG )
Mayor Robert Garcia is presented a proclamation to brothers Kelvin Anderson,left, and Cletus Anderson for their contributions to the city of Long Beach. Cletus opened VIP Records in 1978 and his brother Kelvin took over the business the following year. The VIP Records sign, located at 1014 E. Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach, was declared a historic landmark this week. Long Beach Calif., Thursday, December 21, 2017.
( Photo by Stephen Carr, Daily Breeze / SCNG )
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VIP Records owner Kelvin Anderson poses for a photograph at the World Famous VIP Records in Long Beach on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram/SCNG)
Recognizing its cultural significance, city officials said that Long Beach is committed to partnering with VIP Records to preserve the sign and secure a new permanent location for its public display.
City staffers have worked alongside VIP Records and the Anderson family to draft a contract that will allow for the refurbishment and display of the sign and designate the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue as its new home.
This includes entering into sublicensing agreements with third parties mutually approved by the city and VIP Records for a term of five years, with one additional option to extend for an additional five years, for a total contract amount payable to VIP Records not to exceed $170,000, according to the staff report.
Some of the highlights of the contract include the city overseeing and managing the refurbishment of the sign, and contributing up to $235,000 toward that work, as well as to transport and install the sign. Fiscal year 2025 and Measure A funds were allocated through the Elevate ‘28 project list for the VIP Records sign placemaking, and that money will support the site improvements and related development work, Chandler said.
The city will also be responsible for routine maintenance, and an annual reserve will be set aside for repairs. VIP Records will also retain ownership of the sign and its intellectual property, said Grace Yoon, deputy city manager.
“We are deeply grateful to Kelvin Anderson and the entire VIP Records family for their decades of creativity, mentorship and cultural leadership in Long Beach,” Yoon said. “We’re excited to honor that legacy, to bring the sign back into public view, and to celebrate a piece of Long Beach history that continues to inspire new voices today.”
During the meeting, Anderson thanked the city for its collaboration and this project that has been a “long time coming.” The store owner also thanked Rhonda Love — an influential figure in Long Beach’s art community who died last year — for playing an instrumental role in connecting VIP Records with the city to bring this project forward.
“Long Beach is a big art and music location,” Anderson said. “I am just so excited to be a part of it. The VIP Records sign is definitely something in Long Beach that’s basically known all around the world.
“To have the opportunity to be able to bring it back in public view is just overwhelming to me,” Anderson added. “Forty-seven years on the block, building a brand such as this is special to me and my family and staff, so definitely look forward to moving forward.”
Anderson’s daughter and CEO of World Famous VIP Records, Tenisha Anderson, shared similar sentiments about the importance the sign has had on Long Beach’s culture.
“The VIP Records sign is more than a record store logo,” the younger Anderson said. “It is a cultural staple of Long Beach, representing a creative home for artists and the safe space that has helped shape generations through music, mentorship and opportunity. Our story is deeply woven into the cultural fabric of the city.
“Preserving and publicly displaying the iconic sign and supporting the naming of the VIP Records Park is a powerful way to honor the legacy,” she added, “and creating an inspiring public space for residents and visitors alike.”
The Long Beach City Council approved the agreement with an 8-0 vote.
“This is such a pivotal moment,” said Sixth District Councilmember Suely Saro, who represents the district where the record store is located. “While it’s worldly recognized, (the sign has) always been a source of local pride, and that is something that people in Central Long Beach hold fiercely dear to their hearts.
“We’re all very excited and really proud and honored,” Saro added, “to be able to move to the next phase of being able to restore the sign.”
Now with City Council approval, the Public Works Department will begin the process of selecting a contractor to refurbish the sign. That contract will come back to the council for approval at a later date. Public Works will also coordinate with Anderson and the Long Beach community to develop an appropriate placemaking design within the budget that will help improve the site of “The VIP Records Park” to publicly display the sign.