Respect the Rhymes! Outkast & Salt-N-Pepa…
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The South had one thing to say on Nov. 8 as legendary rap group Outkast was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame alongside hip-hop pioneers Salt-N-Pepa and soul icons Sly and The Family Stone.
The Atlanta-born artists have been inducted by rapper/actor Donald Glover, who spoke to the group’s affect on his own creativity.
“Big Boi and André, I want to personally, thank you. Around the time Speakerboxxx/The Love Below came out, I wrote a letter from college to my brother, and I said, ‘I had a dream that we wrote a show together,” he said during his speech. “Thank you for showing me that brothers may not always see eye to eye and their philosophies or styles, but they need each other in a world that would rather see them both fail together. … Atlanta is not the music Mecca it has become without you. There is no Childish Gambino without you. There is no South without you.”
For their musical tribute, the Hall of Fame tapped Tyler, The Creator, Janelle Monae, Doja Cat, Jid, eliminateer Mike, Sleepy Brown, and Big Boi himself to do the honors. Tyler’s efficiency of “B.O.B (Bombs Over Bagdad)” was a spot-on rendering of the group’s electric and magnifying lyricism and vitality. Meanwhile Janelle’s cowl of Andre 3000’s Grammy-winning “Hey Ya” was also a spotlight. Big Boi took to the stage with Jid for “ATLiens” and later joined eliminateer Mike and Sleepy Brown for “The Way You Move.” Bravo!
Though he didn’t carry out on the night, Andre 3000 still made his mark, delivering a speech about their journey, inspirations, and brotherhood that introduced the Peacock Theater to its toes.
“A lot of times it’s a lot more than just the notes or the instruments that you playing,” he said during his remarks. “It’s all people that’s around you. It’s the household, and this is my household. It’s the wives, it’s the girlfriends, it’s the woman you broke up with that pissed you off and made you write a music. All of that is important … It has a lot to do with the bands that have been out at the same time that influenced us, all the rappers that have been out, from Busta Rhymes to Missy [Elliot] to Nas to Wu-Tang and then even before, we obtained Kilo [Ali], we obtained Raheem the Dream. We have been watching dancers in Atlanta. Those have been our heroes growing up.”
During one notably emotional half of his speech, 3 Stacks spoke on Outkast’s humble beginnings.
“Great things start in little rooms. We started in a little room,” he said through tears.
Salt-N-Pepa also grew to become new inductees that night, with Missy Elliott taking on the position of highlighting their affect on hip hop.
With Missy so often being named as one of the most influential artists of her era both musically and visually, it was good to see her give flowers to those who influenced her. Plus, she grew to become the first feminine rapper to be nominated for and inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2023.
“The reason that you even know Missy Elliott’s name is because of Salt, Pepa, and Spinderella,” she said in her speech. “When you see your favorite rapper, understand that if they’re on top, there’s a foundation that they’re standing on. These three women are the bricklayers to the foundation that holds hip-hop together. They gave us their shoulders to stand on.”
Cheryl “Salt” James and Sandra “Pepa” Denton have reunited and carried out together in current years; however, they’d been long estranged from their DJ, Deidra “Spinderella” Roper. So, followers have been elated to see them put their variations apart for such a memorable night time. They also introduced along En Vogue for a efficiency of “Whatta Man” and Spinderella—who grew to become the first feminine DJ to be inducted into the Hall of Fame—had a solo second to show why she’s still one of the best.
Though there to have a good time a major milestone in their musical historical past, Salt-N-Pepa also used the second to speak about the predatory nature of the industry on artists. Salt revealed that the group’s music isn’t obtainable for streaming amid an ongoing battle for possession.
“This is for every woman who picked up a mic when they told her her she couldn’t,” she said. “As we celebrate this moment, fans can’t even stream our music. It’s been taken down from all streaming platforms because the industry still doesn’t want to play fair. Salt-N-Pepa have never been afraid of a fight. This is the Influence Award. We have to keep using our influence until the industry honors creativity the way the audience does — with love, respect and fairness — and that includes streaming platforms too.”
Despite their current struggles, Salt-N-Pepa’s place in music historical past is firmly cemented. They have been the first feminine rap act to have gold and platinum information as nicely as the first feminine rappers to earn a Grammy. They also maintain a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy and got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2022.
The post Respect the Rhymes! Outkast & Salt-N-Pepa Inducted Into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame On Big Night For Hip-Hop appeared first on GWN.
