Salt-N-Pepa Issue #40

Very Necessary, (London), 1993

By K Tighe
Published: June 1st, 2009 | 12:00pm

With their fourth studio album, the three powerhouse members of Salt-N-Pepa shredded charts and sold millions — making the trio the first female rap act to claim a multi-platinum album. Cheryl “Salt” James, Sandra “Pepa” Denton, and Dee Dee “Spinderella” Roper soon became the first female rap artists to win a Grammy — for Very Necessary’s standout track “None of Your Business.”

Although the group’s prior work (notably the ever-infectious “Push It” and controversial “Let’s Talk About Sex”) established Salt-N-Pepa as popular culture mainstays, 1993’s Very Necessary, with the runaway success of singles “Whatta Man,” “Shoop,” and “None of Your Business,” completely redefined the female role in hip-hop.

The lyrics, while often sexually explicit, offered a refreshing frankness for a time when young women had nowhere to turn for sex education. From light-hearted (“Sexy Noises Turn Me On”) to utterly terrifying (the screeching monologue of “I’ve Got AIDS”), Salt-N-Pepa offered the only voice on the hip-hop stage of the emboldened, enlightened, feminist — and with one hell of a bass line.

MC Isis from Thunderheist

The Canadian duo relies on the same kind of bass-driven dance tracks that Salt-N-Pepa became known for and, like her fearless hip-hop predecessors, MC Isis incites the crowd to mimic dirty dance moves. The young MC’s energy makes live shows so fresh and exciting, she may as well be wearing a starter jacket.

Amanda Blank

The wildly popular “Whatta Man” brought collaboration to a whole new level — by employing the astounding vocal talents of En Vogue. Reaching across the aisle to collaborate with female contemporaries (M.I.A., Santigold), MC Amanda Blank follows the Salt-N-Pepa sentiment that girl power ain’t nothing but a “we” thang.

Missy Elliott

Not only did she sample the early SNP track, “Push It,” on 2003’s This Is Not a Test!, but the reigning queen of hip-hop also wrote the epilogue to Denton’s 2008 biography, Let’s Talk About Pep. By writing her own material, tumbling sexual barriers, and honing collaborative relationships, Elliott always brings it — and platinum every time.