Kensington Place in Brighton’s North Laine is a short, busy little street, and Dream Street Records sits on it with a shopfront you notice long before you reach the door. This is Brighton and Hove’s queer-centred record shop, built around the idea that the records we keep are a kind of personal archive, and that pop music has carried generations of LGBTQ+ people through their lives. It is a warm, bright, unhurried place to spend an afternoon flicking through sleeves.
Background / History
Dream Street Records was created by Rasheed Rahman, a former arts marketing manager and longtime Brighton and Hove resident, and opened in late summer 2025. Rahman brought in a creative team to make the space his own: interior and furniture design by Anna Rose Potter, furniture fabrication and the entrance ramp by James Burial, branding, shop front and merchandise design by Soofiya, and sign writing by Studio Pink. The shop is a member of the Entertainment Retailers Association, and it arrived at a moment when Brighton had lost a couple of much-loved music retailers, which made the opening feel like something the city needed.
What You’ll Find
New and second-hand vinyl sit alongside CDs, cassettes, DVDs, books, magazines, gifts and games. The new racks mix pop bestsellers, queer pioneers and long-standing classics across six decades, while the used stock runs from everyday LPs and 7 inch singles through to premium collectables. Browsing sections take in jazz, rock and roll, British beat, soul, hard rock, punk and new wave, hip hop, reggae, acid jazz, nineties pop, Bollywood and Arabic music, plus dedicated selections for queer heroes and stage and screen. Tote bags, action figures, puzzles, greeting cards and fuzzy-felt artworks fill out the shelves. Much of the stock is also listed online, with collection in store available.
Experience / Atmosphere
Access has clearly been thought about rather than bolted on. There is a permanent ramp at the entrance, wide aisles and lowered vinyl bins, and the team will adjust light or sound levels if that makes a visit easier. Free local delivery is offered with no minimum order to disabled and chronically ill customers in BN1, BN2 and BN3 who cannot get to the shop. The welcome is friendly rather than knowing, and staff are happy to go deep on a record without any of the gatekeeping that puts people off record shops. The space can also be hired, and donations of music and memorabilia feed a community events programme.
Why Visit
- A genuinely queer-centred selection that celebrates LGBTQ+ artists and the artists queer audiences have adopted
- New and used stock side by side, from budget LPs to premium collectables
- One of the most accessible record shops in the city, with a ramp, wide aisles and lowered bins
- Books, magazines, cassettes, games and gifts beyond the racks
- A few minutes’ walk from Brighton station, in the middle of the North Laine
Summary
Dream Street Records is a young shop with a very clear sense of what it is for. Come for the pop history, the queer heritage and the second-hand digging, and stay because it is an easy, generous place to be. If you are in Brighton between Wednesday and Sunday, it is worth building an hour around.
