Salt-N-Pepa Calls Out Record Label In Speech At Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame

Salt-N-Pepa had something to say about their legal battle over their masters while they were honored at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

On Saturday night, November 8, Cheryl "Salt" James, Sandra "Pepa" Denton, and Deidra Roper a.k.a DJ Spinderella attended the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. After receiving an iconic introduction by Missy Elliott, Salt-N-Pepa, their trusted hype woman DJ Spinderella, and their longtime producer Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor, approached the podium to accept to the Musical Influence Award. During her speech, James called out Universal Music Group for taking down their music from streaming sites amid their legal battle.

“This is for every woman who picked up a mic when they told her her she couldn’t,” James said. “As we celebrate this moment, fans can’t even stream our music. It’s been taken down from all streaming platforms because the industry still doesn’t want to play fair. Salt-N-Pepa have never been afraid of a fight. This is the Influence Award. We have to keep using our influence until the industry honors creativity the way the audience does — with love, respect and fairness — and that includes streaming platforms too.”

Over the summer, Salt-N-Pepa filed a federal lawsuit against Universal Music Group after they accused the record label of violating the Copyright Act by not allowing them to take control of their music even though a law allows some musicians to do so after 35 years. The duo's music was released through UMG's subsidiaries Next Plateau London Records. Salt-N-Pepa previously filed filed notices of termination in 2022 to reclaim the rights to their songs. However, according to Variety, UMG responded by claiming the group could not use their “termination rights” because they didn’t sign the contract themselves.

“Clearly, the artists’ legal counsel thinks they can use the threat of negative media coverage from the lawsuit to achieve their unreasonable demands," a UMG spokesperson said about the legal battle. "Despite this, and consistent with our longstanding practice, we remain committed to working towards an amicable resolution.”

Salt-N-Pepa didn't let legal issues rain on their parade. After their speeches, the iconic group hit the stage to perform their hits like "Push It," "Shoop," "Let's Talk About Sex" and "Whatta Man" with R&B group En Vogue. See what The Breakfast Club had to say about Salt-N-Pepa's speech and scenes from their performance below.