Record Shop That Started Snoop Dogg’s Career Wants To Become West Coast Hip-Hop Museum

The record shop that helped launch Snoop Dogg's career is taking strides to become a West Coast hip-hop museum.

VIP Records, the Long Beach, California, record shop that played a pivotal role in launching Snoop Dogg’s hip-hop career is taking steps to become a museum dedicated to West Coast hip-hop.

Kelvin Anderson, who has called VIP Records home for 53 years, pitched civic leaders, artists, and friends his vision to transform the record shop’s lot into a multifaceted facility featuring a recording studio, printing space, restaurant, and live music venue, focusing on showcasing emerging talent.

“Trust me, we are planning on making some big strides this year and getting this museum project done,” Anderson told the Long Beach Post. “So, the key is this location. We want to buy this shopping center. We want to start right here.”

The March 25 pitch event was organized by the nonprofit Creative Class Collective.

VIP Records is enjoy a resurgence of sorts. The iconic World Famous VIP Records sign across the street, which has been designated as a historical landmark, is set to be restored.

After undergoing repairs, the sign—which had been sitting in storage since 2018—will be installed on the southwest corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, directly across from the original storefront. Now, the goal is to secure enough funding to turn the area into an institution dedicated to showing Long Beach’s role in shaping the mainstream music scene.

“I think there’s enough love out there for VIP Records to make this happen,” Anderson said. “If I can get the right couple of people to get behind me and if not write me a check, just help promote it.”

VIP Records is where Warren G, Snoop Dogg, and the late Nate Dogg—then known as 213, named after Long Beach’s then area code —recorded their first four-song demo. After landing his first record deal, Snoop Dogg filmed part of his iconic “Who Am I? (What’s My Name?)” music video on the store’s rooftop.

Anderson also noted that Captain Rapp and Disco Daddy’s 1981 track “The Gigolo Rapp,” one of the first rap records, was recorded in Long Beach. Snoop Dogg attended the pitch event where he expressed his support for the museum and assured Anderson that he remains flexible regarding its location.

“I think it should be there; that’s the birthplace of it all, but, like I say, if they don’t want to act right, we’ll find somewhere we can put it,” he said.

Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson expressed the city’s support for Anderson’s museum proposal but emphasized that, for now, the priority remains the refurbishment and restoration of the iconic storefront sign.

“This is a part of a number of landmark projects that we want to get up in the next few years in advance of the Olympics,” Richardson said. “Even if Kelvin is able to put together the museum, which I love that concept, we think this could fit very well into the (city’s) entertainment strategy, which has been sort of looking at how we tie our history and our roots into our future.”