Photo Credit: David Burke / CC by 2.0
Hip-hop legends Salt-N-Pepa claim Universal Music Group has removed some of their hits from streaming platforms amid an ugly legal battle.
Cheryl “Salt” James and Sandra “Pepa” Denton, the women behind the legendary female hip-hop group Salt-N-Pepa, are fighting a tough legal battle. In a new interview with “Good Morning America” host Robin Roberts, the women say some of their music has been removed from streaming platforms amid their lawsuit with Universal Music Group (UMG).
The lawsuit, filed back in May in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges that Universal Music Group is violating federal copyright law by refusing to allow them to exercise their termination rights. The singers claim UMG is denying them the rights to the master recordings of their early hits, such as “Push It.”
“It just keeps us from re-releasing our music—promoting it,” Denton said during the interview, which aired on Monday.
“When you’re an artist, in the beginning, you sign a contract saying that the copyrights will revert back to you after 35 years,” James explained. “And we’ve done all the things legally to get our copyright back. But they’re just refusing, so we had to sue them.”
“It’s the law. That’s what it really boils down to. It’s the law,” added Denton.
Universal Music Group has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming that Salt-N-Pepa cannot exercise their termination rights because they were not the ones who signed their original contract. The duo say that they believe the copyright law is meant to protect the artists, and because they are the artists, their termination rights should be honored.
“We didn’t have that leverage, we didn’t have that knowledge. We didn’t have that control in the ‘80s. And so, to be held to a contract from 1985, and 40 years later, it’s like, ridiculous,” said James.
Denton added that she believes UMG is trying to maintain control of their music because they know its true “worth.”
“Obviously, it’s something. They want to keep it. They want to hold on to it. And they’re trying to fight us,” she alleged. “So obviously, they understand what’s the worth of that.”
Meanwhile, the duo is preparing to receive the Musical Influence Award at the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in November. They will make history as the first hip-hop act to receive the honor.
“It’s an amazing feeling, because […] it’s for your music, not just one hit,” said Denton. “It’s about your journey, your legacy, what you have done, you know, the influence that you had […] 40 years and we’re still here.”
Content shared from www.digitalmusicnews.com.