Sergio Urida and Bombassmuzik, the last of the South LA record stores



Sergio Urida at his store, Bombassmuzik, in South LA | Andy Vasoyan

Sergio Urida at his store, Bombassmuzik, in South LA | Andy Vasoyan

At the corner of Vernon Avenue and Main Street less than a mile from the 110 freeway, the terrain is a mix of small housing and smaller shops, blending slowly from residential to commercial districts. On the very edge of that border, sandwiched between a now-defunct flooring store and a combination barbershop-taco stand, is Bombassmuzik, one of the last record stores in South Los Angeles.

Bombass is owned by Sergio Urida, a native of the Figueroa Corridor neighborhood who lives within biking distance of the shop that he’s kept alive for 16 years.

Urida works behind a counter on which he’s taped pictures of him posing with Ice Cube and other rap notables, as well as an anime-style drawing of himself that he says a customer gave him. [Read more…]