Very Necessary
Very Necessary is the fourth studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on October 12, 1993, by Next Plateau Records and London Records. The album spawned four singles, including "Shoop" (their first top-five single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four), "Whatta Man" (featuring En Vogue, their highest-peaking single at number three), and "None of Your Business", which would earn the group their first Grammy Award, in the category Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
| Very Necessary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|  | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 12, 1993 | |||
| Recorded | 1992–1993 | |||
| Studio | 
 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 58:44 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | 
 | |||
| Salt-N-Pepa chronology | ||||
| 
 | ||||
| Singles from Very Necessary | ||||
| 
 | ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating | 
| AllMusic |      [2] | 
| Christgau's Consumer Guide |    [3] | 
| Pitchfork | 8.5/10[4] | 
Very Necessary peaked at number four on the Billboard 200, and has been certified five-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting sales in excess of five million copies in the United States.
Track listing
    
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Groove Me" (featuring Styowlz) | 
 | Herby "Luvbug" Azor | 4:21 | 
| 2. | "No One Does It Better" | 
 | H. Azor | 3:53 | 
| 3. | "Somebody's Gettin' on My Nerves" | 
 | 
 | 3:57 | 
| 4. | "Whatta Man" (with En Vogue) | 
 | Azor | 5:07 | 
| 5. | "None of Your Business" | Azor | Azor | 3:32 | 
| 6. | "Step" | 
 | 
 | 3:10 | 
| 7. | "Shoop" | 
 | 
 | 4:07 | 
| 8. | "Heaven or Hell" (featuring Styowlz (Wink & D'dae)) | 
 | S. Azor | 4:43 | 
| 9. | "Big Shot" | 
 | H. Azor | 3:47 | 
| 10. | "Sexy Noises Turn Me On" | 
 | 
 | 3:54 | 
| 11. | "Somma Time Man" | 
 | DJ Wynn | 3:25 | 
| 12. | "Break of Dawn" | 
 | 
 | 3:45 | 
| 13. | "I've Got AIDS (PSA)" | 
 | WEATOC, Inc. | 3:18 | 
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14. | "Shoop" (Danny D's radio mix) | 
 | 3:51 | |
| 15. | "Start Me Up" | 
 | 
 | 3:36 | 
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16. | "Let's Talk About Aids" | 
 | 
 | 3:30 | 
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16. | "Let's Talk About Aids" | 
 | 3:30 | |
| 17. | "Emphatically No" | 
 | 
 | 3:25 | 
Notes
    
Samples
    
- "Whatta Man" contains a sample of "What a Man" by Linda Lyndell.[8]
- "Shoop" contains samples from "I'm Blue" by the Sweet Inspirations and "Super Sporm" by Captain Sky.[9]
- "Heaven or Hell" contains portions of "Heaven and Hell Is on Earth" by 20th Century Steel Band and "Think About It" by Odell Brown & the Organ-izers.[10]
Charts
    
| Weekly charts
 | Year-end charts
 
 
 | 
Certifications
    
}}
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales | 
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[26] | Platinum | 70,000^ | 
| Canada (Music Canada)[27] | 4× Platinum | 400,000^ | 
| United States (RIAA)[28] | 5× Platinum | 3,200,000[29] | 
| ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Notes
    
- Tracks 1–10 and 13
- Tracks 1–3, 5, 6 and 8–10
- Track 5
- Tracks 6, 8 and 9
- Track 11
References
    
- Considine, J. D. (November 19, 1993). "Salt-N-Pepa shows there's more to rap than violence and sexism @". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- Birchmeier, Jason. "Very Necessary – Salt-N-Pepa". AllMusic. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
- Christgau, Robert (2000). "CG Book '90s: S". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan. ISBN 0312245602. Retrieved March 30, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- Lobenfeld, Claire (June 11, 2017). "Salt-N-Pepa: Very Necessary". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
-  Very Necessary (liner notes). Salt-N-Pepa. United Kingdom: FFRR Records. 1993. 828 454-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
-  Very Necessary (liner notes). Salt-N-Pepa. Australia: FFRR Records. 1993. 828543-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
-  Very Necessary (liner notes). Salt-N-Pepa. Japan: FFRR Records. 1993. POCD-1121.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
-  Whatta Man (US CD maxi single). Salt-N-Pepa with En Vogue. Next Plateau Records. 1993. 857 391-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
-  Shoop (US CD maxi single). Salt-N-Pepa. Next Plateau Records. 1993. 857 315-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
-  Heaven 'n Hell (Australian CD single). Salt-N-Pepa. London Records. 1993. 857 391-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
- "Australiancharts.com – Salt 'N' Pepa – Very Necessary". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Top RPM Albums: Issue 2400". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Dutchcharts.nl – Salt 'N' Pepa – Very Necessary" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 19. May 7, 1994. p. 12. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
- "Offiziellecharts.de – Salt 'N' Pepa – Very Necessary" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Charts.nz – Salt 'N' Pepa – Very Necessary". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Norwegiancharts.com – Salt 'N' Pepa – Very Necessary". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Salt-N-Pepa Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Salt-N-Pepa Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "ARIA Top 50 Albums for 1994". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1994". RPM. Vol. 60, no. 21. December 12, 1994. p. 19. ISSN 0033-7064 – via Library and Archives Canada.
- "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 14, 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2021.
- "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1994 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- "Canadian album certifications – Salt 'N Pepa – Very Necessary". Music Canada. September 30, 1997. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
- "American album certifications – Salt 'N Pepa – Very Necessary". Recording Industry Association of America. September 11, 1995.
- Crosley, Hillary (January 22, 2008). "Lil' Kim Parts Ways With Atlantic". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2014.