Forever Changes - Dare to Dream

Fifty years ago, I was born at University of Pennsylvania Hospital and brought home to the apartment above my parents' record store in West Philadelphia, where my family lived until 1975. As the store flourished, we moved into the Wynnfield section, and my parents expanded to two more locations in the city. I grew up behind the counter of a record store taking it all in: the business, the music, the customer care, the networking.

My father was James Cephas and the stores were King James Records (originally King James Sound Center). The stores thrived for many years. But with the advent of the compact disc in the 80s and the industry starting to focus on the larger chains, my family's small business began to suffer, since most of our patrons belonged to working-class African-American neighborhoods. Most didn't have compact disc players at that time, and the high cost of the discs was a burden for a non-essential item. By the early 90s, my dad and I struggled to find ways to deal with the changes in the industry as well as the neighborhoods. Theft, poor sales, high employee turnover were constant headaches. But, the biggest blow was dad's cancer diagnosis.

Twenty-four years ago, my dad passed away. I was 26 years old and in charge of the business. At that time, the best option was to liquidate, pay off debt owed and close the stores. I continued my personal journey, but missed being behind that counter every day. My personal love of music continued and have since built a community of friends and loved ones who share my passion.

One of those loved ones is a young woman I met six years ago. Within the first weeks of dating, Anna and I were off to record stores digging for gems to add to our collection. On our honeymoon three years ago, while at a record store in Portland, Maine, we came up with an idea to continue my father’s legacy with a boutique that sold vinyl records, but also art and clothing and gifts. We've watched as there has been a renewed interest in vinyl records. A young new generation is discovering it for the first time as current artists are releasing their music on vinyl and classic recordings are being beautifully reissued. At the same time, listeners that grew up with vinyl records are rediscovering a lost love. But, we also thought about those folks trying to buy for the music fan in their life - what would a music lover want as a gift if it wasn't an album? The answers came quick with the amazing artisans we personally know creating amazing offerings for music fans.

While this brainstorming was all very exciting, the reality was that it was not the time to begin this venture. But I had the idea to do it part time, as a pop-up shop.

In April 2019, after registering my business with the State of Pennsylvania, obtaining an account with a national distributor, and negotiating a lease for a space in our town of Phoenixville, Forever Changes opened for business as a weekly pop-up selling new and used vinyl records, as well as art and gifts by Livnsol, Rich Wilhelm, and Night Waltz Upcycled. That first year was fun and a great learning experience, but it came to an end in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 lockdown. By fall of 2020, as restrictions eased, I was able to partner with the Phoenixville mainstay Steel City Coffee House & Brewery to set up shop monthly. These monthly pop-ups have been successful and have prepared me for the next step - a storefront.

An aside about that name. Why Forever Changes? Well, the name comes from an album released in 1967 by the Los Angeles psychedelic rock band Love. Aside from the album being a masterpiece overwhelmingly praised by most rock writers and fans, the leader of the band, Arthur Lee was a brilliant African American musician in a landscape dominated by white males. This resonated with me upon first hearing the album as a teen attending prep school in Philadelphia's Main Line suburbs.

So, yes, my true dream of continuing my family's legacy in retail music is to have a storefront in our beautiful historic downtown Phoenixville shopping district. Its a popular destination, with a booming economy. My dad was all about his community - he wanted his stores there and he wanted to spend his own dollars there. I am of the same mind, but with a twist. My "community" is the town of Phoenixville where the shop owners and artisans are friends, but also the African American Community. I want Forever Changes to be a place where Black artisans are highlighted and supported, and an inviting place for the town that has welcomed me.

The pop-ups at Steel City have proven that Phoenixville is ready for Forever Changes. A black-owned business in a white male dominated landscape.

So, the amazing news: we have just signed a lease for a storefront in Phoenixville at 28 S Main St and we are SO excited!! This campaign is to help us raise money for startup capital, purchase inventory, and purchase the fixtures, decor, signage and additional POS equipment.

The goal of Forever Changes is to share the joy of music that I've known for literally 50 years, add another exciting business to our wonderful town, be a point of pride for the local African American community, as well as my own family, be a safe space for music lovers of all orientations, and to celebrate and continue my parent's legacy of which I am so proud.