Sandra "Pepa" Denton, one-half of the iconic rap duo Salt-N-Pepa, found herself in a turbulent situation and was removed from a plane.
Her journey from Las Vegas to Nashville was abruptly disrupted when Southwest Airlines removed her from the flight, citing safety concerns.
“I can’t believe @southwestair kicked me off the plane today. WOW!!! #southwest,” she wrote on Instagram.
Highlights
- Sandra "Pepa" Denton was removed from a Southwest Airlines flight due to safety concerns.
- She revealed she had purchased two seats due to a severe knee injury from a 2018 car crash.
- Her request to keep her extra seat was denied after a man claimed he needed it to travel to a funeral.
- The iconic rapper was escorted off the plane, and three police officers were reportedly waiting for her at the airport.
The 59-year-old rapper revealed that she was heading to Nashville for a meeting. She said she frequently takes the airline’s flight due to its convenient direct route. However, on Monday, July 15, things took a frustrating turn for the artist.
Sandra "Pepa" Denton, one-half of the iconic rap duo Salt-N-Pepa, revealed that she was booted off a plane while traveling from Las Vegas to Nashville
Image credits: darealpepa\
Image credits: darealpepa
"I never thought I'd be kicked off a Southwest plane,” she said in her video. "The other passengers are saying they are gonna write a letter for me.”
Due to a severe knee injury from a 2018 car crash, the Let’s Talk About Sex artist said she paid for two seats to ensure her comfort. She also used a wheelchair service for assistance. Once onboard, a flight attendant told her she couldn't occupy both seats since she wearing a knee brace and was not in a cast.
The initial back-and-forth with the crew ended with Pepa being allowed to keep her seats.
“I got on the plane, and then I had my brace with me but I didn’t have it on at that particular moment,” she told TMZ, as quoted by the Daily Mail. “I took it out of my bag to put it on, I was stretching my legs and then a flight attendant came and he was trying to give my seat away.”
“I was like, ‘Oh no this seat is taken, I have this seat as well,’” and he was like, ‘No you don’t, we’re gonna give this seat away’ and I’m like, ‘No you’re not, cause I’ve always done this,’” she explained. “I’ve always purchased two seats, if I need it, for my leg to have extra leg room because of my injury to my knee.”
The Grammy-winning artist said she had booked two seats on the Southwest airlines flight due to a severe knee injury from a 2018 car crash
Image credits: darealpepa
However, the situation escalated when a man approached, requesting her second seat, claiming he was en route to a funeral.
“The next thing I know, a man comes - mind you, this plane is completely booked, it's 143 seats, the only seat that was vacant was a seat next to me - and this man comes on the plane,” she said.
The man asked her to give up one of her seats, and fellow passengers also joined in on their discussion of whether the hip hop icon should keep the seat or give it up despite paying for it.
Pepa then asked the man to swear he was truly attending a funeral, which he refused.
“I was like ‘Oh my God, this is not happening to me, cause I actually really need this seat,’” she said. “And I got up and I said to the gentleman, ‘Are you going to a funeral, I need you to swear to me and tell me the truth, are you going to a funeral, look me in the eyes.’”
The man “couldn't do it” as “his lip was quivering like he wanted to say something but he wouldn't say, ‘I’m telling the truth,’” she recalled.
“So I said, ‘Well I’m not giving you my seat then and be uncomfortable, if you’re lying.’” she added.
Astonishingly, the man still ended up with her extra seat.
“When I got off the plane sadly, they have three police officers waiting for me and I was like, what?” the legendary rapper said. “And I turned around and I said, ‘This is for me?’ They escorted me out of the airport.”
Image credits: darealpepa
Image credits: darealpepa
Things took a turn for the worse when Pepa called her assistant, who suggested she should record the incident.
Minutes later, the Push It performer was unceremoniously removed from the flight without explanation.
“Get your things, you’re getting off,” a flight attendant told her.
Outside the plane, the airlines informed her that she was booted off the plane for recording a video. But Pepa asserted that she never actually recorded anything inside the plane.
She was also shocked to see law enforcement officials waiting for her after she was removed off the aircraft.
“When I got off the plane sadly, they have three police officers waiting for me and I was like, what?” she said. “And I turned around and I said, ‘This is for me?’ They escorted me out of the airport.”
Following the on-flight events, she managed to reschedule her Nashville meeting and received a $2,500 reimbursement for her seats. But she's still out $300 for the greeter and another $500 for a car service she couldn't use.
Southwest Airlines provided a statement to the Daily Mail and said, “Our Flight Crews are responsible for the Safety and Comfort of all Passengers in the cabin. With that in mind, they denied boarding to the Customer and her ticket was refunded.”
Netizens said she should file a lawsuit "just to make a point"
