Hot, Cool & Vicious | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | December 1, 1986 | |||
Recorded | October 1985 – August 1986 | |||
Studio | Greene St. Recording (New York City) | |||
Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 41:36 | |||
Label | Next Plateau | |||
Producer |
| |||
Salt-N-Pepa chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Hot, Cool & Vicious | ||||
|
Hot, Cool, & Vicious is the debut studio album by American hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa. Released by Next Plateau Records on December 1 1986, it was the first rap album by a female rap act to attain gold and platinum status in the US.
Hot, Cool, & Vicious reached the top 40 on the US Billboard 200 chart. The album included the single "Push It", which reached the top 20 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number two on the UK Singles Chart after being propelled by a remix, and was nominated for Best Rap Performance at the 31st Annual Grammy Awards. [1] The album has sold approximately four million copies worldwide. It became the first album by a female rap act to attain gold and platinum status by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The album features the songs "The Showstopper" and "I'll Take Your Man", recorded and released prior to the full album's release. It also includes R&B radio favorites "Tramp" and "My Mic Sound Nice". In 1987, the addition of the single "Push It" (US #19, UK #2), along with the replacement of two other tracks with remixed versions, propelled the album to gold, then platinum status in the United States, and made it the first album by a female rap act (or group) to attain gold and platinum certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America. [2] [3] "Push It" was also certified platinum. [4]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [5] |
Robert Christgau | A− [6] |
NME placed Hot, Cool & Vicious at number 18 on their list of the best releases of 1987. [7] The album was certified platinum in the US, making the trio the first female rap act to have a gold or platinum album. [7]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Push It" (remix) | Hurby Azor | 4:31 |
2. | "Beauty and the Beat" | Azor | 4:39 |
3. | "Tramp" | 3:30 | |
4. | "I'll Take Your Man" | 6:22 | |
5. | "It's Alright" | Azor | 3:15 |
6. | "Chick on the Side" (remix) | 4:54 | |
7. | "I Desire" |
| 3:16 |
8. | "The Showstopper" | Azor | 6:22 |
9. | "My Mic Sounds Nice" | Azor | 4:52 |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada) [17] | Gold | 50,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [18] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Salt-N-Pepa is an American hip hop group formed in New York City in 1985, that comprised Salt, Pepa, and DJ Spinderella. Their debut album, Hot, Cool & Vicious (1986), sold more than 1 million copies in the US, making them the first female rap act to achieve gold and platinum status by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album included the single, "Push It", which was released in 1987 as the B-side to their single "Tramp", and peaked within the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Bigger and Deffer is the second studio album by American rapper LL Cool J, released on May 29, 1987, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. With over two million copies sold in the United States, it remains one of LL Cool J's best-selling releases. Bigger and Deffer dominated the summer of 1987, spending 11 weeks atop the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and peaking at number three on the Billboard 200. It became the fourth hip hop album to receive platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
How Ya Like Me Now is the second solo studio album by American rapper Kool Moe Dee from the Treacherous Three. It was recorded at Battery Studios in London, England and released on November 3, 1987, via Jive Records.
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance is an honor presented to recording artists for quality rap performances. It was first presented at the 31st Annual Grammy Awards in 1989 and again at the 32nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1990, after which point the award was split into two categories: Best Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. These two categories were combined again in 2012 as a result of a restructure of Grammy categories, and the reinstated Award for Best Rap Performance was presented at the 54th Grammy Awards in 2012. The restructuring was the consequence of the Recording Academy's wish to decrease the number of categories and awards and to eliminate distinctions between solo and duo or group performances.
Cheryl Renee James is an American rapper. She is best known as a member of the female rap trio Salt-N-Pepa, which also includes Pepa and Spinderella. James starred in The Salt-N-Pepa Show, a reality TV series focusing on reforming the group; which aired on the VH1 network in 2008.
Very Necessary is the fourth studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on October 12, 1993, by Next Plateau Records and London Records. As the group's last album to feature writing and production from their manager and primary producer Hurby Azor, it spawned four singles, including "Shoop", "Whatta Man", and "None of Your Business", which would earn the group their first Grammy Award, in the category Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
"Push It" is a song by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa. It was first released as the B-side of the "Tramp" single in 1987. Then released by Next Plateau and London Records, it peaked at number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in early 1988 and, after initially peaking at number 41 in the UK, it re-entered the charts after the group performed the track at Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday concert, eventually peaking at number two in the UK in July 1988. The song has also been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The song is ranked number 446 on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" and was ranked number nine on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop".
"Let's Talk About Sex" is a song by American hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa, released in August 1991 by Next Plateau as the fourth single from their third studio album, Blacks' Magic (1990). It was written and co-produced by Hurby Azor, and achieved great success in many countries, including Australia, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland and Zimbabwe where it was a number-one hit. Its music video was directed by Millicent Shelton. In 1992, "Let's Talk About Sex" earned a nomination in the category for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the Grammy Award.
"What a Man" is a song written by Dave Crawford, and originally recorded for Stax Records' Volt imprint by Linda Lyndell, whose recording reached number 50 on the Billboard R&B chart in 1968. The song was sampled and reinterpreted as "Whatta Man" in 1993 by the trio Salt-N-Pepa with En Vogue, which became a commercial success; reaching the top ten in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 2011, German singer Lena Meyer-Landrut covered the song while retaining the original title and lyrics.
This is the discography of Salt-n-Pepa, an American hip hop trio.
This is the discography of American pop/R&B quartet En Vogue who began their career in early 1990s. Their discography includes seven studio albums, two EPs, 28 singles—four as featured artists, and 21 music videos on their former record labels Atlantic, East West, Elektra, Discretion, and 33rd Street.
A Salt with a Deadly Pepa is the second studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on August 2, 1988, by London Records and Next Plateau Records. The album reached number 38 on the Billboard 200 and number eight on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. On December 1, 1988, it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album spawned three singles, the top-10 R&B entry "Shake Your Thang"; the top-20 R&B entry "Get Up Everybody "; and "Twist and Shout", which peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart. The album's title is a play on "assault with a deadly weapon".
Blacks' Magic is the third studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on March 19, 1990, by Next Plateau Records and London Records. A critical and commercial success, the album peaked at number 38 on the US Billboard 200 and number 15 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and has been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments in excess of one million copies in the United States. The album spawned four commercially successful singles, three of which reached the top 10 of the Hot Rap Singles chart; "Let's Talk About Sex", "Expression", "Do You Want Me", and "You Showed Me".
Funhouse is the second and penultimate album by American hip hop duo Kid 'n Play. It was released on March 13, 1990, through Select Records. Recording sessions took place at Bayside Sound Recording Studio and at Soundcheck Studio in New York. Production was handled by Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor and the Invincibles. It features the lone guest appearance from Salt-N-Pepa.
"Shoop" is the lead single released from American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa's fourth studio album, Very Necessary (1993). The song was produced by group members Sandra "Pepa" Denton and Cheryl "Salt" James with Mark Sparks. Released in September 1993 by Next Plateau, the song became one of the group's more successful singles, reaching numbers four and five on the US Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100, and topping the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart at number one. Two months after its release, "Shoop" was certified gold by the RIAA; it went on to sell 1.2 million copies. Its accompanying music video was directed by Scott Kalvert. The success of both this single and the follow-up single "Whatta Man" propelled Very Necessary to sell over 5 million copies in the US, becoming the group's best-selling album.
Sandra Jacqueline Denton, better known by her stage name Pepa or Pep, is a Jamaican-American rapper, best known for her work as a member of the female rap trio Salt-N-Pepa. Denton starred in The Salt-N-Pepa Show, a reality TV series focusing on reforming the group which aired on the VH1 network in 2008. Since January 2016, Denton has appeared as a supporting cast member on the music reality television show Growing Up Hip Hop which airs on We TV.
"Expression" is a song by American group Salt-N-Pepa, released as the lead single from their third album, Blacks' Magic (1990). The song was both written and produced by member Cheryl "Salt" James. It became the group's second single to reach the top 40 in the United States, peaking at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 while also topping the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart, becoming their first song to do so. The single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In 1992 a re-release charted within the top 30 in Ireland and the United Kingdom and peaked at number 13 in France. The accompanying music video is notable for marking the directorial debut of director Millicent Shelton.
The Best of Salt 'n Pepa is a greatest hits album by American hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa, released in November 1999. The album featured tracks from their five studio albums, Hot, Cool & Vicious, A Salt with a Deadly Pepa, Blacks' Magic, Very Necessary and Brand New. A remixed version of their 1998 song "The Brick Track Versus Gitty Up", "Gitty Up" was released as a single and charted in the top 20 in Australia and New Zealand in 2000.
The Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa. It was released on October 7, 1991, by FFRR Records and Next Plateau Entertainment. The album was certified Platinum in the United Kingdom.
A Blitz of Salt-N-Pepa Hits: The Hits Remixed is the first compilation album by American hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa. It includes re-mixed versions of songs taken from their three studio albums, Hot, Cool & Vicious, A Salt with a Deadly Pepa and Blacks' Magic. The album has been certified platinum in Canada.