Salt-N-Pepa Trash DJ Spinderella Over Lawsuit, Accuse Her of 'Smear Campaign'

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Salt-N-Pepa are firing back at DJ Spinderella’s lawsuit, saying they tried to take care of her for years only to have it backfire.

According to court documents obtained by The Blast, Pepa (real name Sandra Denton) and Salt (Cheryl James) are responding to the lawsuit filed by DJ Spinderella (real name Deidra Roper), in which she accuses them of screwing her over for years.

Salt and Pepa say, “After decades of friendship, Spinderella has embarked on a smear campaign, and sued her friends, based on blatantly erroneous assertions. The truth, however, is that Salt and Pepa have always tried to do right by Spinderella.”

They continue, “Spinderella decided to quit performing with Salt and Pepa years ago and asked to rejoin the group “Salt N Pepa” in December, 2013. Nostalgia and the desire to help a friend motivated Salt and Pepa to agree. They offered to pay Spinderella on a per show basis to perform with the group. Spinderella, grateful for the opportunity, agreed, and they performed together again.

The band claims, “Things unfortunately did not work out and Salt-N-Pepa spent months trying to close open issues—like how they would each refer to their shared history going forward as they each pursued respective careers—in the hope they could part as friends.

They claim to have no problem never mentioning Spinderella again, with the promise she will do the same. Salt and Pepa also deny Spinderella’s accusation they didn’t pay her in full for their Vegas shows, calling the claim “pure fantasy.”

Earlier this year, DJ Spinderella filed a federal lawsuit against her former band mates.

The suit explained the trio started recording and performing as SNP back in the mid-1980s. Spinderella says she helped launch the group to be the success they are today.

The band went into hiatus in the late 1990s but she continued promoting the band. She claims things got weird in the early 2000s when she learned of a compilation album being released. She says Pepa told her they would pay her $125,000 but that never came.

She continued, “By the early 2000s, the Defendants discussed with Roper an SNP reunion which would have possibly involved, among other things, a television show based on the legendary female group’s rise to stardom.”

Spinderella claims they promised her a one-third cut of profits.

They signed onto a VH1 show, "known as 'The Salt N Pepa Show' was aired with numerous episodes featuring only Defendants James and Denton. Plaintiff Roper was invited to appear—only as a guest—on several episodes of the Salt N Pepa television show for minimal compensation."

She continued working with Salt and Pepa over the years for tours and other events. Spinderella says she always asked about the money but was always told she was being paid the full cut.

Spinderella says she even agreed to do a Las Vegas residency with the girls from the Fall of 2018 through the Spring of 2019. She was to be paid per show but claims the payments were not paid on time or regularly.

The DJ says she refused to accept low pay for her work and then in January, she got a written notice of termination from the band’s lawyers.

She says her former bandmates have recently started talking to Lifetime to do a miniseries on the band, without telling her a thing.

Spinderella also claims they have interfered with her plans to do a Vegas residency. She also takes issues with allegedly not being paid all her royalties.

She is demanding unspecified damages, accounting for all their royalties and work and for an injunction prohibiting Salt and Pepa from using her name or likeness.