Salt-N-Pepa Get a Spicy Biopic on Lifetime

quotMan for me I mean it39s just amazingquot said Denton of having their story immortalized on film quotTo have a biopic of your life story especially for us being in such a maledominated field amp8230 There were so many barriers we broke down We were trailblazers Yes I do toot my horn as it was a journey with ups and downs and to be able to talk about and celebrate it amp8230 A lot of times with biopics unfortunately the artist isn39t here to celebrate I remember watching What39s Love Got to Do with It the Tina Turner story and I was like 39Man if I do a movie I want it to be just like that I39m gonna end on stage doing a show and doing my thing39quotquotIt39s the same for mequot echoed James quotWith SaltNPepa it was just destiny for us The way our story unfolded from the beginning until now and to be here 36 years later celebrated not only with the biopic but getting our star on the Walk of Fame and the Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award it39s the career that people dream of having from beginning to end Who would39ve thought I always knew we were gonna make it as artists but I never in my wildest dreams thought that at this particular time in my life I would still be doing press junkets and tours and basically crying for a break sometimes It39s an insane blessingquotSince bursting onto the music scene in 1985 with their first single The Showstopper SaltNPepa experienced many personal and professional highs and lows most of which are depicted in the project Originally entitled Super Nature as SaltNPepa the group was responsible for infectious classics like Push It Shoop Whatta Man and Let39s Talk About Sex It was at the insistence of James39 thenboyfriend and producer Hurby quotLuv Bugquot Azor that they became SaltNPepa after being inspired by a lyric in that first single Both artists concur success wouldn39t have been so enduring had the name not changedquotIn the verse of that song we go 39We go together like SaltNPepa39quot Denton said quotAll the fans were like 39Yo play that SaltNPepa song39 They remembered that line so Hurby was like 39You39re Salt and you39re Pepa39 It wouldn39t have been so big if we39d kept the name Super Nature Hands down SaltNPepa was the way to goquotquotI agreequot added James quotI think symbolically it represents two women that are polar opposites but are best friends There39s the salt and the pepper in every friendship so I think the audience was able to relate to that in a very personal way It represented us and our personalities in an amazing way So I don39t think it would have been anything near what we are if it wasn39t that namequotA key to the film39s success was the casting of the actors who would personify SaltNPepa onscreen After an exhaustive search they hit gold with GG Townson and Laila Odom who are perfect and thanks to the film39s subjects being actively involved in every aspect of the production both found filling those shoes easy quotCheryl just embraced me wholeheartedlyquot beamed Townson quotShe was an open book and told me the good the bad and the ugly about everything So for me it was it wasn39t superhard I didn39t have to try to figure out anything on my own I could ask her and there was no wrong question to ask Cheryl39s love and openness were how I prepared to get into who she wasquotquotI prepared by watching Sandyquot Odom explained quotIt felt so surreal to actually meet them I feel like we39re very close in personalities and I connected to her It was funny when Cheryl was on set and I would do something She39d laugh and be like 39Oh Pep would have done it just like that too39 So here39s a casting shout out to Leah Daniels Butler as I think by casting me and GG we formed an even tighter friendship very reminiscent of the girls and of them growing together and going on this journey of music It was the same for GG and mequotAccording to James encapsulating 35 years into a 2 amp189hour movie had its limitations and was emotional quotThere were legal limitations and so many things we wanted to do and weren39t able toquot she explained quotFor me and Pep there wasn39t anything we didn39t want to say I had a lot of anxiety doing it as you do have to revisit old wounds It opens old wounds and questions you have about things that you experienced I definitely had a hard time pushing through it but with the help of everyone that supported me it was a great experiencequotquotIt39s the truth and honesty of the moviequot offered Denton quotHere are two friends that had ups and downs going through a lot It39s two stories going into one and there were some rewrites but it39s our story and we39re here to talk about it So we were learning stuff about each other still some nittygritty stuff that you39ll see in the moviequotquotWe39ve been well celebrated for our whole careerquot James said in closing quotWe took a 10year hiatus came back and it was like we never skipped a beat For this generation to know our music and who we are is incredible We39re not just artists we are a brand We created a band we created a movement we made a statement that left an imprint on not only people39s minds but their hearts They have so much love for us and we do for the fans and people who still support usquotSaltNPepa will be telecast Saturday January 23 at 8 pm followed by the documentary Let39s Talk About SaltNPepa on LifetimeClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Salt-N-Pepa Get a Spicy Biopic on Lifetime

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Steve Gidlow

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