“Never get rid of what you got, because you never know when it’s going to come back.” – Charlie Joe Henderson, founder of Out of the Past Records.

For six decades, Annisa Gooden and her family have held a business together with that saying.

Located in Chicago, Out of the Past Records is an archive of American music and one of the city’s oldest record stores. It has also been family-owned and operated throughout its entire lifespan.

What began as a small photography shop grew into a multi-store enterprise around the city’s west.

However, the stores eventually closed, some due to fires and some due to displacement, leaving only one location.

Now, as the last record shop standing, Annisa works overnight shifts just to help keep the doors open during the day, ensuring her grandparents’ legacy remains a pillar for the Black community and Chicago.

“I can see how hard my grandfather worked,” says Gooden. “Why would I throw that away?”

This is her story.