Hip-hop group Salt-N-Pepa has accused Universal Music Group of allegedly holding its master recordings hostage to sabotage its upcoming induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame amid its lawsuit over ownership of master recordings.For the uninitiated, the hip-hop group consisting of Cheryl "Salt" James, Sandra "Pepa" Denton, and DJ Spinderella sued UMG in May 2025 for allegedly violating federal copyright law. The artists claimed the record label refused to let them exercise their "termination rights," which would allow them to gain ownership of their original recordings after a period of time.According to an exclusive report by AllHipHop, published on August 10, 2025, Salt-N-Pepa claimed UMG refused to give them ownership of their masters and has reportedly pulled their popular tracks from streaming platforms in an alleged "calculated attempt to sabotage their upcoming Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction."The trailblazing hip-hop group, known for hits like Push It! and Let's Talk About S*x, will reportedly be inducted into the Hall of Fame in Los Angeles on November 8, 2025. Furthermore, the complaint added that UMG allegedly:“Halted exploitation of the relevant sound recordings in the United States, thereby effectively demonetizing Plaintiffs’ catalogue—months before Plaintiffs are set to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.”Rock & Roll Hall of Fame @rockhallLINKTrailblazers who changed the face of hip-hop, @TheSaltNPepa take their rightful place in music history. Watch Salt-N-Pepa’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on November 8, 2025, on @DisneyPlusAs per court documents, the physical two-inch master tapes are reportedly in UMG's possession in a secure facility, despite repeated requests for a transfer of ownership.“Plaintiffs’ Master Tapes hold significant value and are incredibly rare. They are the original, highest quality, physical source material of Plaintiffs’ sound recordings,” the lawsuit stated.Salt-N-Pepa claims UMG took a "punitive measure" by removing their albums from streaming platformsAccording to The Guardian, Salt-N-Pepa's debut and sophomore studio albums, namely Hot, Cool & Vicious (1986) and A Salt With a Deadly Pepa (1988), were taken down from streaming platforms in May and June 2024, respectively.In their lawsuit, the group alleged that UMG removed the albums as a "punitive measure" in a move to allegedly indicate "that it will hold plaintiffs’ rights hostage even if it means tanking the value of plaintiffs’ music catalog and depriving their fans of access to their work.”Glock Topickz @Glock_TopickzLINKSalt-N-Pepa are demanding UMG comply with the termination of their contract, per Section 203 of the American Copyright Act, which returns Salt-N-Pepa the rights to song recordings after time.According to the complaint, UMG has refused to cooperate with them, not resulting in revenue loss, but preventing them from entering a new agreement with a new party to license the recordings.Furthermore, Salt-N-Pepa claims UMG is impeding their right to promote and make money off the recordings themselves. Salt-N-Pepa are seeking no less than $1 million in damages, a declaratory judgment, and a permanent injunction that blocks UMG from distributing their music without a license going forward.According to court documents, Salt-N-Pepa filed notices for termination to gain ownership of their masters in 2022. The masters are reportedly with UMG’s Next Plateau Records and London Records, as per contracts in 1986 and 1992. However, UMG has allegedly refused to let them exercise their "termination rights," with the lawsuit stating:“UMG appears to take the position that it can unilaterally decide when and/or if a recording artist is entitled to termination. This is not the law, and UMG does not have this power.”However, the record company countered that Salt-N-Pepa cannot exercise their “termination rights” because the artists did not sign the contracts themselves. In their response, a UMG spokesperson dubbed the termination notice "invalid," adding that the record label tried to "resolve" the issue "amicably."“Salt-N-Pepa’s own legal filings demonstrate the repeated attempts we have made to resolve this matter amicably (including offers to enter into a mediation) ever since the artists served an invalid termination notice. Although we had no legal obligation to do so, we still sought to find a way to improve the artists’ compensation and pay them directly – even after they had sold their royalty streams to a third party,” the spokesperson said.Salt-N-Pepa is not the only hip-hop act to file a lawsuit against UMG in recent times. In January 2025, Canadian rapper Drake filed a defamation lawsuit against the record label concerning Kendrick Lamar's Not Like Us following the high-profile 2024 rap battle.In his lawsuit, Drake alleged that UMG “approved, published and launched a campaign to create a viral hit out of a rap track" that was “intended to convey the specific, unmistakable, and false factual allegation that Drake is a criminal p*dophile.” Both lawsuits are still ongoing as of this article.