Asbury Park African-American Music Project

What Asbury Park African-American Music Project does

The Asbury Park African-American Music Project (AP-AMP) Inc. is a volunteer-run, community-driven 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2017 to preserve and celebrate the African-American music heritage of Springwood Avenue in Asbury Park, New Jersey. The organization serves local community members, music historians, and cultural tourism audiences through a portfolio of products including oral history interviews with local musicians, a digital museum platform hosted on Passitdown, documentary videos, educational outreach programs, and the Tuesdays at the Turf free outdoor concert series. A core ongoing initiative is the restoration of the Turf Club, the last surviving structure that was once a music venue on Springwood Avenue.

AP-AMP's primary content asset is its oral history archive, which includes filmed interviews with local musicians and over 1,846 vinyl records from the House of Hits Collection donated by the Cinter family, covering music history from 1940 to 1984. The organization has documented 30+ historic music venues and 40+ individuals tied to Springwood Avenue. Research materials are archived at the Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music at Monmouth University. The organization's technology footprint is modest: a Wix-based website, a Passitdown-hosted digital museum, social media presence on Facebook and Instagram, and an online merchandise shop offering small-ticket apparel and accessories.

The revenue model is entirely donation-based, comprising individual tax-deductible donations, merchandise sales ranging from $3 to $40, and grants from approximately 18 foundations and corporate funders including the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, New Jersey Historical Commission, Bruce and Patti Springsteen, Walmart Giving, and FirstEnergy Foundation. AP-AMP is organizationally lean with no disclosed paid employees, operating from a PO Box 485 mailing address in Asbury Park, NJ, while hosting events at The Blackbird Commons (131 Atkins Ave) and pursuing the Turf Club (1200 Springwood Avenue) restoration. The business model is sustained through community engagement, earned media, and concentrated grant funding rather than commercial revenue generation.

Name

Asbury Park African-American Music Project

Legal name

Asbury Park African-American Music Project Inc.

Website

https://asburyamp.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Asbury Park African-American Music Project (AP-AMP) is a volunteer-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2017 that preserves and celebrates the African-American music heritage of Springwood Avenue in Asbury Park, NJ, serving local community members, researchers, and cultural tourists through oral histories, a digital museum, free concerts, and educational outreach.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Preservation

NAICS

Performing Arts Companies (7111), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Performing Arts Organizations (Theater, Dance, Opera, Music) (BPAGAHAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Live Music Clubs & Venues (MPAGAIAB)

Keywords

• Cultural heritage preservation
• Oral history archive
• Community event programming
• Historical research services
• Music heritage education

Headquarters

HQ city

Asbury Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Tax-Deductible Contributions: The organization accepts tax-deductible donations to support concerts, local musicians, community events, research, and educational outreach programs
2. Merchandise Sales: Online shop selling apparel (t-shirts, sweatshirts, tank tops, hats), accessories (tote bags, pouches, koozies), and promotional items (mugs, magnets, buttons, mouse pads) priced from $3 to $40
3. Foundation and Corporate Funding: Funding received from multiple foundations and corporate donors including African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, New Jersey Historical Commission, Bruce and Patti Springsteen, Walmart Giving, and others

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AP-AMP is a volunteer-run, community-driven 501(c)(3) nonprofit that preserves and celebrates the African-American music history of Springwood Avenue in Asbury Park, NJ. Its core offerings are oral history interviews and historical research, an interactive digital museum, free community concert programming (Tuesdays at the Turf), documentary video production, Turf Club restoration, and an online merchandise shop that funds the mission.

Product overview

The Asbury Park African-American Music Project (AP-AMP) is a volunteer-run community organization that preserves and celebrates the African-American music heritage of Springwood Avenue in Asbury Park, NJ. The organization offers a portfolio of educational and cultural products: Historical Research & Interviews capturing oral histories from musicians and community members since 2017; a Digital Museum hosted on Passitdown featuring filmed interviews, historic maps, and photographs; Educational Outreach programs; Community Events including the Tuesdays at the Turf outdoor concert series; Documentary Videos; and Turf Club Preservation efforts. An online Merchandise Shop sells apparel and accessories to support the mission.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Historical Research & Interviews Oral history documentation and research activities capturing filmed interviews with local musicians, venue owners, and community members connected to the Springwood Avenue music scene. Serves researchers, historians, and the general public interested in African-American music heritage.
• Digital Museum Interactive online digital museum featuring filmed interviews, historic maps, photographs, and oral history content documenting the African-American music history of Asbury Park's Springwood Avenue. Accessible globally and free to use.
• Educational Outreach Educational programs and presentations sharing the stories of Springwood Avenue's African-American music heritage with the broader community, schools, and cultural organizations.
• Community Events (Tuesdays at the Turf) Free outdoor concert series (Tuesdays at the Turf) featuring local and regional musical acts at The Blackbird Commons venue in Asbury Park. Open to community members, music enthusiasts, and tourists.
• Documentary Videos Produced video documentaries about Springwood Avenue musicians and venues, including 'Down the Ave: Stories of Springwood Avenue' and 'The Turf Club Story' historical fiction documentary, plus musician interview videos.
• Turf Club Preservation Restoration and preservation efforts for the Turf Club, the last surviving structure that was once a music venue on Springwood Avenue. The venue is currently under renovation.
• Merchandise Shop Online shop selling branded merchandise including t-shirts ($25-$30), sweatshirts ($40), tank tops ($25), hats ($25), tote bags ($10-$30), mugs ($15), magnets ($5-$7), and buttons ($3). Proceeds support AP-AMP's mission.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,846 vinyl records preserved and catalogued from Al's House of Hits collection
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American MusiccoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner at Monmouth University where AP-AMP's oral history interviews, transcripts, and research materials are archived and preserved
• Teen Arts NJminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership offering Summer 2026 high school internship opportunity at AP-AMP
• New Jersey Performing Arts Center - North to Shore FestivalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFestival partnership for programming and events

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center: Heritage site dedicated to a single Black music legend with broader regional oral history and community programming, paralleling AP-AMP's musician-centered documentation and educational outreach model.
• Blues Hall of Fame: National-level institution honoring Black American music contributors with archives and educational programming, comparable to AP-AMP's archival approach to preserving musicians' stories.
• Memphis Music Hall of Fame: Local/regional music heritage institution celebrating a specific city's musical legacy (Memphis), comparable to AP-AMP's preservation of Springwood Avenue's African-American music heritage in Asbury Park.
• Motown Museum: Historic venue/museum (Hitsville U.S.A.) preserving African-American music history at a specific site, mirroring AP-AMP's mission to restore and program the Turf Club and document Springwood Avenue's legacy.
• Stax Museum of American Soul Music: Music heritage museum dedicated to Black American music history in a specific city (Memphis), with educational programming and archival focus similar to AP-AMP's oral history and digital museum approach.

Broad incumbents

• Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP): Seattle-based pop music and culture museum with music heritage exhibits and educational programming, operating at a far larger scale than AP-AMP but covering adjacent content categories.
• Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Large, well-funded music heritage museum covering the broader rock-and-roll canon including African-American pioneers—potential competing venue for the same donor, visitor, and curatorial attention AP-AMP targets.
• Grammy Museum: Music industry-affiliated museum with educational programming and traveling exhibits that address Black music history, representing a larger institutional competitor for the same researcher and educator audience.
• Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture: Federally chartered institution documenting African-American history including music, with research archives that overlap with AP-AMP's content and could subsume its narrative at scale.

Emerging players

• Rhythm Discovery Center: Niche interactive music museum focused on percussion and rhythm, comparable as a smaller-scale cultural-heritage nonprofit pursuing music education and community programming similar to AP-AMP.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/asburyamp
• Instagraminstagram.com/asbury_amp/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Asbury Park African-American Music Project