Salt-N-Pepa refuse to accept defeat in their legal battle against Universal Music Group over ownership of their legendary catalog.
The Hip-Hop pioneers filed an appeal with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, challenging a federal judge’s dismissal of their copyright lawsuit.
Salt-N-Pepa believe the lower court made a critical error when it ruled they never possessed the sound recording rights to classics like “Push It” and “Shoop.”
The duo’s legal strategy centers on a complex web of contracts from their early career that they argue proves a legitimate transfer of ownership.
During the 1980s, Salt-N-Pepa signed with Herbie Luv Bug’s production company, which subsequently negotiated a separate agreement with Next Plateau Records.
The group also executed a letter stating that they would be treated as parties to that label arrangement, thereby, in their attorneys’ view, creating a valid chain of copyright transfers.
Their appeal argues this contractual sequence establishes the type of rights transfer that Section 203 of the Copyright Act allows artists to reclaim after 35 years.
The federal termination statute was designed to give creators a second chance to control their work after initial contracts expire. Universal Music Group responded to its termination notices by arguing that the duo lacked legal standing because they never transferred the copyrights in the first place.
Salt-N-Pepa contends the trial judge dismissed their case prematurely at the motion-to-dismiss stage, preventing them from presenting evidence supporting their ownership claims.
“The record companies have been getting away with this for a lot of years and it’s time for us to fight for our rights,” Salt explained during a recent Good Morning America interview.
The label also removed Salt-N-Pepa’s biggest hits from streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music, effectively blocking fans from accessing their music catalog.
“When you an artist in the beginning, you sign a contract saying that the copy rights will revert back to you after 35 years, and we’ve done all the things legally to get our copyrights back, but they’re just refusing,” Pepa stated in the same interview.
Hip-Hop artists from the genre’s early decades often signed unfavorable deals without proper legal representation or understanding of long-term implications.
“We didn’t have that leverage. We didn’t have that knowledge. We didn’t have that control in the 80s,” Salt emphasized during their television appearance.
Salt-N-Pepa broke barriers as the first all-female rap group to achieve platinum status, earn Grammy recognition, and reach global commercial success.
Their catalog has generated millions in revenue over four decades, making the ownership dispute particularly significant for their financial legacy.
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals will now review whether the lower court correctly interpreted the complex contractual relationships from Salt-N-Pepa’s early career.
Related
