Salt-N-Pepa

Released: July 26, 1988

Songwriter: Herby “Luvbug” Azor

Producer: Herby “Luvbug” Azor

As I was way in the back I noticed that
Salt was rockin' the hell out of some of you cats
Then I decided to slow down the tempo
To let you catch your breath so
Just wait for the drumroll then you can feel the flow of

Syncopated soul power
Got to have syncopated soul power
All you need is syncopated soul power
Yeah, gimme some soul power
Everybody needs soul power

I'm the Pepa, much deffer
Half-stepper? No, I'm never
World renowned as a vocalist
When Salt is not around I'm a soloist
Puttin' pep in your step seriously
Conquest is the best lyrically
The mic is a component I use on my opponents
Only to flaunt it, it just sound good, don't it?
Rhyme power, organic as a sunflower

And full of soul power
All I got is sycopated soul power
All you need is sycopated soul power
Cold kickin' soul power
Steady kickin' soul power

Now raise your hands and keep 'em there for a minute
I'm gonna tell you what to do with it
Wave it like a flag, dirty rag
Keep 'em there till they get jet lag
Pepa's on the mic, and the mic is on
If Salt's at my side, nothing can go wrong
Meet the mix empress, Spinderella, head on
And that, my friend, is the meaning of a rap song
Keep your shirt on, don't lose the buddies
If I ain't done rappin' yo, Spin, keep cuttin'
Ain't nothin' gonna stop us now

We on a roll with syncopated soul power
Got to have syncopated soul power
All you need is syncopated soul power

Soul power, soul power
Soul power, soul power...

Salt-N-Pepa is arguably the most successful female rap group of all time. The group began with Cheryl “Salt” James and Sandra “Pepa” Denton meeting while studying to be nurses. James got Denton a job at a Sears department store, where her boyfriend Hurby “Luv Bug” Azor also worked. Azor was studying music production and he asked them to help on a school project, an answer record to Doug E. Fresh’s “The Show” they named “The Showstopper” – recorded in 1985 under the name Supernature.

After the legendary Queens DJ Marley Marl played “The Showstopper” on his radio show, the group began getting booked for shows. One lyric in “The Showstopper” was ‘We the salt and pepper’, and people kept requesting ‘that salt and pepper song’, so they changed their name to Salt-N-Pepa. Deejay Deidra “Spinderella” Ropa was added soon after.

SNP’s debut album Hot, Cool, & Vicious originally spawned a minor hit in the UK with “My Mike Sounds Nice” in early 1987. But it was the re-release of a remix of “Push It”, originally a quickly-thrown together b-side for their fall ‘87 single “Tramp”, that shot the group into international stardom. The song reached the top 10 in eleven countries around the world in 1988.

more tracks from the album

A Salt With a Deadly Pepa

From the album

A Salt With a Deadly Pepa (1988)

Salt-N-Pepa popular songs

Solo Power (Syncopated Soul)Salt-N-Pepa

Salt-N-Pepa

A Salt With a Deadly Pepa