Background
1980s
New York City-based independent label Next Plateau Records began in the early 1980s and ultimately became a successful independent label. Writers and producers signed to the record company include John Robie, who produced C-bank’s single, “One More Shot”. The company also signed the female rap act Salt-N-Pepa, who went on to score several hits on the US Hot 100 including the songs "Push It" and Shake Your Thang, and freestyle act Sweet Sensation, which had a hit with the song “I’m Hooked On You”.
1990s
During the 1990s Next Plateau had several hits on the American charts and some international charts with Paperboy’s “Ditty”; Sybil’s "Don't Make Me Over" and "Walk On By"; Boy Krazy’s “That’s What Love Can Do”; KWS’s “Please Don’t Go”; and with their biggest act, the female trio Salt-N-Pepa, with hits such as "Expression", "Do You Want Me", and “Let’s Talk About Sex”.
In 1996, Next Plateau was distributed by Roadrunner Records, which at the time was distributed by RED Distribution. The company's assets (excluding the company's name) were later sold to PolyGram Records, Roadrunner, and Warner/Chappell Music in 1999, thus dissolving the label.
2000s
In 2004, Next Plateau was restarted by company founder Eddie O’Loughlin, who signed dance music twins Nina Sky. Next Plateau now focused on electro, dance, and trance music. Next Plateau’s Eddie O’Loughlin also has an A&R consultancy role in selecting the artists, songs, and producers for NBC's "The Voice" television show.
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.
Pete Waterman Entertainment (PWE) is the production company one-time pop and dance record label owned by British pop mogul Pete Waterman. The label, originally PWL, is most famous for being the home of hit record producers Stock Aitken Waterman.
Nina Sky is a Puerto Rican-born musical duo based in the United States, consisting of identical twins Nicole and Natalie Albino. Their debut single "Move Ya Body", released from their self-titled debut album in 2004, was a success, reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100. Their most recent album, Nicole and Natalie, was released in July 2012.
Nina Sky is the debut studio album by Puerto Rican girl group Nina Sky. The album was released on June 22, 2004, in the United States and a week later worldwide. It debuted at number 44 on the US Billboard 200 and sold 341,000 copies according to Nielsen Soundscan. The lead single "Move Ya Body" received a Gold Certification from Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The second single was "Turnin' Me On", but did not match the success of "Move Ya Body".
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.
"Move Ya Body" is a song by American musical duo Nina Sky. It was released on April 12, 2004, as the lead single from their self-titled debut album (2004). The song became the duo's only solo single to reach the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. The song was ranked at number 250 on Blender's "500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born" and is well known for the use of the recurring ostinato on the bongos known as the "Coolie Dance" riddim. This has been the subject and musical motif of many musical samples.
Midland International Records was a US record label founded in 1974 by Eddie O'Loughlin and Bob Reno.
"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.
Brand New is the fifth studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on October 21, 1997, by London Records. The group's international label at the time, Red Ant Entertainment, filed for bankruptcy before the album was officially released; aside from a brief tour and some TV and print ads, almost no promotion was available to boost the record. Brand New spawned two singles: "R U Ready" and "Gitty Up". The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on November 25, 1997, a sharp decline from the group's previous efforts.
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".
"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.
"Do You Want Me" is a song by American R&B-hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released in February 1991 as the third single from their 1990 album, Blacks' Magic. It reached No. 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and charted at No. 5 on the UK Singles Chart. The song also peaked at No. 9 in Portugal, No. 16 in the Netherlands, and No. 19 in Australia.
"None of Your Business" is the third single from American hip hop group Salt-n-Pepa's fourth studio album, Very Necessary (1994), released in August 1994 by Next Plateau. Written and produced by Hurby Azor, the song earned the group its first Grammy Award. It is included on the 1996 Barb Wire and 2000 Miss Congeniality soundtracks.
"Shake Your Thang" is a song by American R&B and hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released by Next Plateau Entertainment and London Records as the first single from their second studio album, A Salt with a Deadly Pepa (1988). The song features the Washington, D.C.–based go-go musical band, E.U. It samples "It's Your Thing" by The Isley Brothers and "Funky President" by James Brown.
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.
Greatest Hits is the first compilation album by American R&B and pop singer-songwriter Sybil, released in 1997.
