Backline Music Co.

Backline Music Co. in Wake Forest, North Carolina, combines music lessons with a curated selection of used records and other physical media. In this interview, the owner discusses building the storefront, buying collections, and helping students find music.

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Interview with Backline Music Co.

"Backline" is stage-gear language. Where did the name come from, and what's the shop about?

The name Backline comes from our love of live music and our goal of creating a comfortable, welcoming space for everyone. While we do sell records, music lessons are our primary focus. We want to help kids discover their musical interests, develop their talents, and pursue their dreams of learning an instrument.

We offer guitar, bass, piano, and voice lessons, with a primary focus on rock music. We also have roughly 500 records for sale, and we list our inventory online through Discogs and eBay.

You recently got your own storefront in Wake Forest after building up to it. What was that road like, and what did opening the doors change?

I've been teaching music in the area for years, gradually building my own clientele through in-home lessons. Eventually, I reached a point where traveling to students' homes limited how much I could grow. Opening a storefront was the next logical step. It gave me a place where students could come to me, allowed me to teach more students, and created opportunities to expand the business beyond private lessons.

Your shop is built around lessons and physical media. What does the record side look like?

We actually don't sell movies. Our physical media inventory consists of used vinyl records, CDs, and cassettes. Vinyl is our primary seller, although we do see people buying CDs as well. Cassettes tend to be more of a collectible niche item.

We also try to keep our prices slightly below the going used-market rate for the exact pressing of each record. We want customers to feel like they're getting a fair deal when they shop with us.

Wake Forest is growing fast just north of Raleigh. What role does the shop play locally, and who's coming through?

Wake Forest continues to grow as more people move into the area. We're located in a smaller space toward the rear of our building, so we're not necessarily a traditional walk-in record store. Music lessons are our main draw, but we have neighboring businesses that bring in additional foot traffic. We support one another, a lot of our students and parents will visit our neighbors and give them business, too and there's a real sense of community among the businesses here.

Parents who bring their kids in for lessons are often interested in browsing our records, too, which creates a nice connection between the two sides of the business.

What's the first tell that a box of records is going to be a good one?

Condition is the biggest factor for us. We try to keep our inventory as clean and high-quality as possible, ideally finding near-mint copies whenever we can. A great title is always exciting, but the condition of the record makes a huge difference.

What do sellers most often overvalue — the record they're certain is a payday that isn't?

It's tough when someone brings in records they believe are worth a lot of money, only for them to turn out to be dollar-bin titles. One of the biggest misconceptions is that a record must be valuable simply because it's old. In reality, value depends on factors like the specific pressing, demand, rarity, and condition. Age alone doesn't make a record valuable.

How do customers usually pay?

We use Square to process payments and also accept cash. Most customers prefer the convenience of paying electronically. I'd estimate that around two out of every ten customers pay with cash, while the rest generally use a card or another payment method through Square.

North Carolina summers are humid and a lot of collections come out of a garage. What condition damage do you see most?

Water damage is one of the biggest issues we encounter. Deep scratches can also be an immediate dealbreaker for us, especially when they affect playback.

Another problem is seeing records, particularly 45s, stored in stacks without proper sleeves. Over time, dust and debris build up, and the records can become scratched or damaged from rubbing against one another. Proper storage and protection make a huge difference in preserving a collection.

What's a record that came in with a real story attached — where did it come from?

One that stands out is Head Hunters by Herbie Hancock. Someone donated a pristine copy to us, and we eventually sold it to a buyer through Discogs. Afterward, I learned that the buyer worked at Apple's headquarters and had created numerous patents.

I like to think that record found its way to someone pretty interesting and possibly famous ha ha

For someone thinking about opening their own shop in a growing town, what did you learn early that you wish you'd known?

I'd say to slow down and appreciate the love and care that go into building a business instead of constantly focusing on the money that hasn't come in yet. It's easy to get caught up in what you hope the business will become and forget to appreciate the progress you're making along the way.

Our primary focus is music education, so I'm still learning a lot about the record business. We're constantly adapting, figuring out what works, and overcoming challenges as they come. I've learned that you don't have to know everything from day one. Sometimes, taking a thoughtful, patient approach and being willing to learn is the best way forward.

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Last updated: 2026-10-13

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