Posted by | Ray Cornelius
The VH1 Hip Hop Honors airs tonight at 9 p.m. with a salute to female rap mavericks—Queen Latifah, Missy Elliott, Lil Kim and Salt-N-Pepa. But not everyone is happy about the honorees. R&B Diva Angie Stone is feeling a bit snubbed by the network and wants everyone to know about it.
According to the AJC , Stone is “outraged, hurt and disappointed” that her female rap group, The Sequence, are being left out of tonight’s ceremony. The Grammy nominated-performer claimes that her trio should be included in that tribute since they were technically the “first female rap group” not Salt-N-Pepa. “We definitely should have been included in the celebration this year for sure,” said Stone in a statement.
The Sequence—Cheryl Cook (Cheryl The Pearl), Gwendolyn Chisolm (Blondie), and Angie Brown Stone (Angie B.)—were formed in the late 1970’s and were the second group behind The Sugarhill Gang to be acquired by the legendary—Sugar Hill Records. The group released the popular song, “Funk You Up” in 1979 and enjoyed success with other hits including 1980’s “Monster Jam feat. Spoonie Gee” and 1981’s “Funky Sound (Tear the Roof Off).”
Stone acknowledged her group and their place in rap history during an Atlanta performance last November at Center Stage. She performed a medley of their songs along with her former group member “Blondie” and John “Ecstasy” Fletcher from the iconic rap group Whodini.
Salt-N-Pepa debuted in 1985 and constisted of Cheryl “Salt” James, Sandy “Pepa” Denton and Latoya Hanson, who was later replaced by Deidra ‘Spinderella” Roper. They went on to become rap superstars and enjoyed a bevy of hits in the 80s and 90s including “Push It,” “Shake Yo Thang,” “Let’s talk about Sex,” “What A Man featuring En Vogue” and “None of Your Business,” which garnered them their first Grammy Award and made them the first female group to win the coveted honor.
This is actually the second time Salt-N-Pepa is being honored during a VH1 Hip Hop Honors show. They were recognized in 2005 alongside LL Cool J, Ice-T, Big Daddy Kane, The Notorious B.I.G and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
What are your thoughts? Do you think VH1 should recognize The Sequence?
Photo Credits: RayCornelius.com and Spin.com
