Product Code Database
Salt-N-Pepa (sometimes stylized as Salt 'N' Pepa) is an American hip-hop group formed in New York City in 1985, that comprised Salt (Cheryl James), Pepa (Sandra Denton), and DJ Spinderella (Deidra Roper). Their debut album, Hot, Cool & Vicious (1986), sold more than 1 million copies in the US, making them the first female rap act to achieve RIAA by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).Sorcinelli, Gino (January 20, 2017), Salt-N-Pepa Outsold Wu-Tang, So Why Don't We Talk About Them More?. Medium. Retrieved on February 28, 2019 The album included the single, "Push It", which was released in 1987 as the B-side to their single "Tramp", and peaked within the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Salt-N-Pepa's second album A Salt with a Deadly Pepa (1988), was certified gold by the RIAA. The Trio's third album, Blacks' Magic (1990), featured the singles "Expression" and "Let's Talk About Sex". In 1993, they released the album, Very Necessary, which sold more than 7 million copies worldwide (5 million of those in the U.S.), and was the highest-selling rap album by a female act (solo or group) in history at the time.Ross, Erik (May 18, 2013), The 50 Best Selling Rap Albums of All Time. Complex. Retrieved on February 28, 2019 The album included the hit singles "Shoop" and "Whatta Man" with En Vogue. They won the 1995 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for their song "None of Your Business", making them one of the first female rap acts to win a Grammy Award, along with Queen Latifah, who won later during the same ceremony. In 2021, they won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Salt-N-Pepa was selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2025 for Musical Influence.
Salt-N-Pepa have sold more than 15 million records worldwide, Salt N Pepa Announce Australian Tour. Beat Magazine. Retrieved on February 28, 2019 making them one of the best selling rap acts of all time. Their success in rap and hip hop culture has earned them the honorific title "The First Ladies of Rap".Orcutt, KC (March 10, 2016), First Ladies Of Rap: Salt-N-Pepa. Source Magazine. Retrieved on February 28, 2019.
After finding some success with "The Show Stoppa (Is Stupid Fresh)", Azor, James, and Denton decided to focus on the group full-time, with Denton and James soon dropping out of nursing school. Azor changed the group's name to Salt-N-Pepa, based on the song's lyrics "Right now I'm gonna show you how it's supposed to be 'Cause we, the salt and pepper MCs", which had resulted in radio stations getting phone calls requesting "The Showstopper" by Salt And Pepper. In September 1985, the group signed to Next Plateau Records, but the label only wanted to release a single at first; James and Denton recorded "I'll Take Your Man", produced by Azor, and the label released it. The song utilized a melody from the hit single "Flash Light" by funk band Parliament. Next Plateau had now requested a full-length album, and Azor felt the group should be a female trio, similar to the male rap trio Run DMC. Before starting work on a full-length album, Azor recruited DJ Latoya Hanson (called Spinderella) into Salt-N-Pepa. The ladies worked on the album and in December 1986 the trio's debut album Hot, Cool & Vicious was released, produced by Azor, Salt's boyfriend at the time and the group's manager. Hanson was in the group for a few months but she and Salt were not on friendly terms and Hanson departed the group after they finished the album, but just before it was distributed to stores. Soon after, in early 1987, 16-year-old high school student Deidra Roper was recruited into the group by Azor and became known as Spinderella, the DJ in the group.
Hot, Cool & Vicious included some moderate rap/R&B radio hits such as "The Showstopper", "My Mic Sound Nice", and "Tramp", but when San Francisco DJ and producer Cameron Paul created a remix to "Push It", the B-side of the "Tramp" single, it gave the group their first major hit. "Push It" (US #19, UK #2) became a platinum single in the United States, and a hit in several other countries, and was added to subsequent pressings of Hot, Cool & Vicious. It was nominated for a Grammy Award, and the strength of that single catapulted the album to platinum sales in the U.S. with over 1 million copies sold, making Denton, James, and Roper the first female rap act to go platinum. The album ultimately sold 1.4 million copies worldwide.
The group entered the music industry at a time when hip hop was believed to be a fad, and as major record companies were very reluctant to sign hip hop artists, many early hip hop artists recorded for independent labels. Salt-N-Pepa greatly impacted hip hop by being one of the first all-female rap groups. Concerned about sexist lyrics and video clips that objectified women's bodies in hip hop, many feminism disliked rap and hip hop because it negatively portrayed women. However, Salt-N-Pepa changed the look of hip hop. They were scantily clad in sexy clothing and were not afraid to talk about sex and their thoughts about men. Their song "Let's Talk About Sex" was a huge hit.
The group's third album Blacks' Magic was released on March 19, 1990 and saw personal moments for the trio on different levels. Pepa had become the first group member to become pregnant. Azor produced some songs on the album, but as he was producing other acts, he agreed to let the group work with different producers to finish the album. Salt and Spinderella took on some producing assignments themselves, and the trio hired different producers, such as Invincible's producer Dana Mozie. This was the first album to feature Roper on vocals throughout much of the album as well as DJing. The result was six singles released by Next Plateau Records, several of which became hits: "Expression" (US #26, UK #40 in 1990, UK #23 in 1992), a platinum single, produced by Salt; "Independent"; "I Don't Know" (featuring Kid 'n Play); "Do You Want Me" (US #21, UK #5), certified gold; "Let's Talk About Sex" (US #13, UK #2), certified gold, and later re-recorded as "Let's Talk About AIDS" for an awareness promotion; and "You Showed Me" (US #47, UK #15). The album ultimately sold 1.6 million copies worldwide with 1 million of those sold in the U.S. A greatest hits album called A Blitz of Salt-N-Pepa Hits, featuring some remixed versions of songs from the group's first three albums later was released.
In 1992, they appeared in the film Stay Tuned, performing the song "Start Me Up".
In March 1999, Salt-N-Pepa embarked on a tour. Pepa married Treach of Naughty by Nature on July 27 of the same year. Salt-N-Pepa's greatest-hits album, titled The Best of Salt-N-Pepa, was released in Europe on January 25, 2000. Pepa and Treach remained married for two years, but their tumultuous marriage ended in divorce on July 31, 2001. With no albums contractually due at the time, Salt decided to quit the group, stating she had enough of the music industry and no longer wanted to be involved in it. They officially disbanded in 2002. Some time later, Salt announced that she would release a solo album, but ultimately did not do so. She was featured on the remix version of the Salt City Six's "Shine" on the album Holy South Worldwide, a compilation of Christian rap and Christian R&P (Rhythm & Praise) songs. The album was produced by ex-Three 6 Mafia member-turned-Christian rapper Mr. Del. Salt also revealed in later interviews that she had suffered from bulimia many years ago. Pepa appeared on the fifth season of VH-1's The Surreal Life. Spinderella became a radio personality on KKBT 100.3 in Los Angeles. She hosted The Backspin (with DJ Mo'Dav), a nationally syndicated weekly radio show featuring old school hip hop music. She also periodically DJs at various clubs. The trio was disbanded for a total of five years.
On October 14, 2007, The Salt-N-Pepa Show debuted on VH1. Pepa had previously appeared on a different show on the network called The Surreal Life. The Salt-N-Pepa Show chronicled events in the lives of Pepa and Salt as they work out past issues. Spinderella has been featured in several episodes. Later in 2008, the trio performed at the BET Hip Hop Awards. That August, Pepa released an autobiography titled Let's Talk About Pep, co-written by Karen Hunter, which features an introduction by Queen Latifah and an epilogue by Missy Elliott. To accompany the book, she launched her own social network for fans and also starred in the reality TV series Let's Talk About Pep on VH1.
On May 9, 2009, Salt-N-Pepa performed at the Ladies of the 80s concert in Honolulu, which also featured SWV and Lisa Lisa. They performed at the Good Vibrations Festival in Australia in February 2010, and the South West Four Festival, Clapham Common, London on August 29, 2010. On October 12, 2010, Salt-N-Pepa received the I Am Hip Hop Award at the BET Hip Hop Awards.
On February 4, 2011, Salt-N-Pepa headed on a national tour titled Salt-N-Pepa's Legends of Hip Hop Tour. Salt n Pepa's Legends of Hip Hop Tour Official Site - Home. Hiphoplegends.com. Retrieved on April 24, 2012. Other acts on the tour included Whodini, Rob Base, Kurtis Blow, Doug E Fresh, Biz Markie, Naughty By Nature, MC Lyte, Big Daddy Kane, Kool Moe Dee, Slick Rick, and Chubb Rock. On November 21, 2011, Salt-N-Pepa appeared on The X Factor Australia's third season with contestant and finalist Johnny Ruffo. They performed "Push It". On July 30, 2012, Salt-N-Pepa opened for rap group Public Enemy in Brooklyn, New York as part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Concert Series.
The trio made a November 2014 appearance in a Geico insurance commercial performing "Push It". Salt-N-Pepa appeared on the December 18, 2015 episode of The Wendy Williams Show performing "Push It". The performance started out with Wendy Williams pretending to be the DJ, thus Spinderella ultimately assumed the duties. This was an allusion to the fact that Roper, Williams, and several other women had auditioned for the part of DJ in the group back in 1987; the DJ role ultimately being won by Roper. The group's hit song "Shoop" made a comeback on February 12, 2016, as one of the theme songs featured in the blockbuster Marvel movie Deadpool. The trio performed in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada for Westerner Days at the Enmax Centrium on July 21, 2016.
In 2017–2018, the group toured as part of the I Love the 90's tour, performing in various locations, including in the UK Wembley Arena, Glasgow SSE, Liverpool Arena and Birmingham. On October 16, 2018, Salt-N-Pepa appeared on the U.S. version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, with Kid N Play serving as their "plus one" in-studio lifeline.
On May 2, 2019, the Mixtape Tour commenced in Cincinnati, Ohio. Performers on this tour include Salt-N-Pepa, Debbie Gibson, Tiffany Darwish, and Naughty by Nature, with New Kids on the Block being billed as the headline performers. The next day, DJ Spinderella announced in an Instagram post that she had been "terminated" from Salt-N-Pepa as of January. She broke her silence after the band had not publicly announced their parting ways with her, insinuating that Salt-N-Pepa remained silent about the split in order to manipulate fans into thinking she was part of their upcoming projects. DJ Cocoa Chanelle, formerly of BET Networks and HOT 97, became the replacement DJ.
In March 2019, it was announced that Salt-N-Pepa would have a biographical miniseries coming to the Lifetime network, highlighting the rise of the group to become one of the first successful female rap groups in hip hop. On January 23, 2021, Lifetime released an eponymous biopic, directed by Mario Van Peebles, which starred GG Townson as Salt, Laila Odom as Pepa, Monique Jasmine Paul as DJ Spinderella, Cleveland Berto as Hurby Azor, and featured Daniel Keith Morrison as MC Hammer, Denver Taylor as Martin Lawrence, Bronson Phillip Lake as Christopher "Kid" Reid, and Devante Senior as Christopher "Play" Martin. Salt and Pepa served as the executive producers while Queen Latifah served as a producer. A "Special Edition" of the film was released on January 23, 2021.
On November 4, 2022, all three members temporarily reunited to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located by the Amoeba Music store on Hollywood Boulevard. In April 2025, Salt-N-Pepa were selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the Musical Influence Award category.
|- !scope="row" | 1989 | "Push It" | Best Rap Performance | |- !scope="row" | 1992 | "Let's Talk About Sex" | rowspan= "2" | Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group | |- !scope="row" rowspan= "2"| 1995 | "None of Your Business" | |- | "Whatta Man" (with En Vogue) | Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group | |- !scope="row" | 1997 | "Champagne" | Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group | |- !scope="row" | 2021 | Salt-N-Pepa | Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award | |-
|- !scope="row" | 2022
| Salt-N-Pepa | Star in the category of music | |-
|- !scope="row" rowspan= "3" | 1994
| rowspan= "3" | "Whatta Man" (with En Vogue) | Best Dance Video | |- | Best R&B Video | |- | rowspan= "2" | Best Choreography In A Video | |- !scope="row" rowspan= "2" | 1995 | rowspan= "2" | "None of Your Business" | |- | Best Dance Video | |-
|- !scope="row"| 1989
| Salt-N-Pepa | Favorite Female Musician | |-
|- !scope="row" | 1989
| "A Salt with a Deadly Pepa" | Best Rap Album | |-
|- !scope="row" | 1995 | Salt-N-Pepa | Entertainer of the Year | |-
|-
!scope="row" | 2005 | Salt-N-Pepa | Honoree | |- !scope="row" | 2016 | Salt-N-Pepa | Honoree | |-
|
|
