Salt-N-Pepa Classic Album ‘Very Necessary’ Celebrates 30th Anniversary

Coinciding with the celebration of hip-hop’s 50^th anniversary is the 30^th anniversary of Salt-N-Pepa’s classic album Very Necessary. In honor of the occasion, Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) — the catalog division of Universal Music Group — is announcing the release of Very Necessary (30^th Anniversary Edition) on Oct. 20 https://saltnpepa.lnk.to/VeryNecessary30th

Originally released on Oct. 12, 1993, Very Necessary was the fourth studio album recorded by the pioneering, social activist trio of Cheryl “Salt” James, Sandra “Pepa” Denton and Deidra “DJ Spinderella” Roper. In addition to being available as a limited-edition deluxe double LP and a two-CD deluxe package, the album’s 30^thanniversary rollout will include a digital deluxe version. 

In a statement to Billboard about the anniversary edition, Pepa said, “When we started out people questioned if hip-hop would even last. Here we are 30 years later, celebrating the anniversary of Very Necessary, ourselves as women and our contributions to the 50-year legacy of hip hop. It’s a beautiful thing! Thank you to all our fans for keeping Salt-N-Pepa alive and relevant all these years.” 

Very Necessary spun off three of the group’s memorable hits: “Shoop,” the group’s first top five single on the Billboard Hot 100, “Whatta Man” featuring En Vogue, top three on the Hot 100, and “None of Your Business.” The latter gave the group its first Grammy Award for best rap performance by a duo or group. The album, now certified quintuple-platinum, also reached the top five on the Billboard 200, peaking at No. 4.

The limited-edition deluxe double LP configuration of Very Necessary (30^th Anniversary Edition) features four bonus tracks on blue vinyl, including “Emphatically No,” a remix of “Shoop” and two new remixes of “Whatta Man.” In addition to the latter, the two-CD deluxe and digital deluxe edition contain a total of 13 bonus tracks, ranging from the new original “Let’s Talk About AIDS” and “I Am the Body Beautiful” to various alternate mixes, a cappella versions and instrumental tracks. The two-CD deluxe also boasts liner notes on the making of “Shoop.”