Record Store Day in Grand Rapids, Michigan
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 Grand Rapids, Michigan
Independent record shops open in Grand Rapids, Michigan 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.
- Backwards Compatible
Underground media-culture store selling vintage and used vinyl, CDs, cassettes, VHS tapes, retro video games, and band t-shirts, with in-store CRT setups for retro gaming.
2 sources
- Black Dog Books and Records
Fulton Street shop combining a well-curated used bookstore with a strong record selection; buys, sells, and trades both books and vinyl.
2 sources
- Boomtown Records
Creston neighborhood shop specializing in Japanese and rare vinyl alongside new and used records, cassettes, CDs, and retro video games; buys and sells collections.
2 sources
- Della Soul Records
Grand Rapids' first Black woman-owned record shop, offering an eclectic mix of vinyl spanning jazz, R&B, hip-hop, and Motown in a community-centered space for buying and selling records.
3 sources
- Grand Rapids Vinyl
New-vinyl shop focused on essential rock & roll records, located inside Grand Rapids Coffee Roasters with a dedicated sound system for browsing while you get coffee.
2 sources
- Rev Charles' Dodds Record Shop
Michigan's oldest record shop, tracing back to Cole's Records in 1937, with roughly 80,000 used LPs and 45s spanning the 1930s through 1990s; open select weekends and always for Record Store Day.
2 sources
- The Corner Record Shop
Grandville record shop with tens of thousands of records including a large selection of 45s spanning rock, jazz, R&B, and blues, plus vintage audio equipment and turntable repair.
2 sources
- The Full Circle Record Shop
New record shop sharing space with Misfitz Audio, selling new and used vinyl, CDs, and cassettes with a classic-rock-leaning selection and rotating hi-fi stereo gear for sale.
3 sources
- Vertigo Music
Downtown Grand Rapids' largest record store, stocking upwards of 25,000 new LPs priced below retail alongside roughly 10,000 used records across all genres, plus turntables, speakers, needles, CDs, and cassettes; buys and picks up collections.
3 sources
- Vinyl Alchemy
Eastown record shop next to Yesterdog, stocking a curated mix of popular and obscure vinyl, CDs, memorabilia, and concert posters with a listening area and knowledgeable staff.
3 sources
See the full record store listing for Grand Rapids, Michigan.