Record Store Day in Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Two dates to know: Record Store Day Black Friday is Friday, November 29, 2026, and the next main Record Store Day is Saturday, April 17, 2027.
What is Record Store Day?
Record Store Day is an annual event built around independent record stores. The main event traditionally lands on the third Saturday of April each year; Record Store Day Black Friday is traditionally held the day after US Thanksgiving. Both days bring exclusive, limited-run vinyl and CD releases sold only at participating independent shops — not big-box retailers, and not mail order until the in-store exclusives sell through. Because pressings are limited, popular titles can sell out within the first hour, which is why a line-early culture has grown up around the day even at shops that are otherwise quiet on a weekday morning.
Tips for the day
- Arrive early. At busy shops, lines for popular titles can start well before opening.
- Bring cash. A cash line often moves faster than card on a shop's highest-volume day of the year.
- Check each shop's own site or Instagram in the week before the date — participating shops post their own opening time, line policy, and which exclusive titles they've ordered in.
- Release lists are first-come, first-served and vary store to store. A title in stock at one shop may not show up at another, even across town.
- Expect one-per-customer or per-household limits on the most in-demand titles.
- Not every independent record store participates every year, and allocations vary shop to shop — confirm directly with the shop rather than assuming based on a past year.
Shops to check in Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Independent record shops open in Dubai, United Arab Emirates right now. We don't yet track which specific shops participate in Record Store Day or what they've ordered in for a given year — check each shop's own site or Instagram close to the date for their exclusive-release list, opening time, and line policy.
- Cavo.ae - Music & Lifestyle
Umm Ramool vinyl and CD shop with a wide range of genres plus a cassette selection and merchandise; ships fast nationwide but also welcomes in-person browsing at its Showroom 9 space, next door to sister K-pop shop KPOP.ae.
1 source
- Metal East Records Store
Al Barsha's dedicated metal specialist inside The B1 Mall -- a focused but welcoming record store with a deep classic-rock and metal vinyl selection, turntables and hi-fi gear, and a team collectors call their 'second home' for vinyl in Dubai.
1 source
- Raw Music Store
Al Quoz Industrial record-and-hi-fi store with a wide range of new and used vinyl from pop to jazz, funk to rock, plus amps and turntables; friendly, knowledgeable staff and a well-kept used-vinyl section.
2 sources
- The Flip Side
Dubai's first independent vinyl shop, tucked into a warehouse in Alserkal Avenue's art and design district; a thoughtfully curated selection spanning electronic, house, dub, funk 45s, jazz and rock, plus a listening station and in-store events.
1 source
- Virgin Megastore (Mall of the Emirates)
Regional entertainment chain's flagship UAE branch (the largest Virgin Megastore in the region) with a dedicated in-store vinyl section alongside CDs, games and electronics.
3 sources
See the full record store listing for Dubai, United Arab Emirates.