Pop-Rap Group Salt-N-Pepa sued Universal Music Group, who tried to regain control of the lead record.

Salt-n-Pepa is known for its irrepressible hits in the 1980s and 1990s (for example, push), let's talk about gender, both of which hit second in the top 20 in the UK and the US.

Original members of the group, Cheryl James and Sandra Denton, before DJ Spinderella joined, invoked a provision of the U.S. Copyright Act that allows artists who transfer their copyrights to another party to take them back after 35 years.

In 2022, the two submitted termination notices aimed at ending UMG's ownership of early recordings. But in their lawsuit, they claimed that UMG said the termination notices were invalid because Salt-N-Pepa's song was "a work for hiring works" and the two could not obtain rights.

The lawsuit states: "UMG appears to have unilaterally decide when and/or whether it has the right to terminate. This is not law, and UMG does not have such power."

The group's first two albums, 1986's Hot, Cool and Vicious, 1988's Salt and the Deadly PEPA Salt were removed from the streaming service. They claim they died on “large royalties” when the directory is offline.

The pair claimed that their 1990 album Blacks' Magic's rights should be back with them in March, whether they still hope to win the rights to the subsequent albums in May 2026.

Denton and James are seeking financial losses and bans against infringement of their copyrights.

UMG replied: “Salt-N-Pepa’s own legal application shows that we have been friendly in repetitive attempts to resolve this issue (including mediation) since the artist provided an invalid termination notice.

“Although we have no legal obligation to do so, we are still trying to find a way to improve the artist’s compensation and pay these compensation directly, even if they sell the royal operations to third parties.

"Obviously, the artist's legal counsel believes that they can leverage the threat of negative media coverage of the lawsuit to meet their unreasonable demands. Nevertheless, and consistent with our long-term practice, we remain committed to working on a friendly solution."

Although they have not released albums since their brand new 1997 album, Salt-N-Pepa continues to tour, with their latest date in 2023.

They were one of the first women to win a Grammy for their rap performances, and for your tracks in 1995, none of your business was taken from the album, which was very necessary. Two other tracks on the album were in the top five in the United States, with Shoop and En Vogue collaborating on Whatta Man. They achieved a lifetime achievement in 2021 and were included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Music Influence category earlier this year.