Known for her distinctive and powerful voice,[2] Wash first achieved fame as half of the Two Tons O' Fun, along with Izora Armstead, as they sang backing vocals for the disco singer Sylvester including on his signature hit "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)".

The duo was renamed the Weather Girls in 1982 after they released the top-selling single "It's Raining Men", which brought them to mainstream pop attention.

Wash is also noted for sparking legislation in the early 1990s that made vocal credits mandatory on CDs and music videos.

Subsequently, in Rolling Stone, music critic Jason Newman described Martha Wash as "The Most Famous Unknown Singer of the '90s".

[8] Shortly after graduating high school, Wash joined a gospel group NOW (News of the World), which also included Izora Rhodes.

Impressed with her vocal performance, Sylvester inquired if she had another large black friend who could sing, after which she introduced him to Izora Rhodes.

[13] In an interview with Daily Xtra!, Wash stated that working alongside Sylvester helped her hone her own vocal stylings.

In 1986, Wash released a solo song, "Breakin' The Ice", on the soundtrack for the Paramount feature film Gung Ho.

Shortly after the album, the Weather Girls disbanded and Wash took up a solo career and also began working as a session vocalist.

[17] In 1989, Wash recorded the song "(You're My One and Only) True Love" as a demo, produced by David Cole who would later form the C+C Music Factory.

[18] In the summer of 1989, Italian house music group Black Box recruited Wash initially as a session singer to demo their upcoming songs.

Wash initially became aware of the scandal and sued RCA Records and Black Box for commercial appropriation in September 1990.

In November 1990, the C+C Music Factory released their debut single "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)", which featured Wash's uncredited vocals on the chorus.

The song became an international hit, peaking at number one on Billboard's Hot 100,[24] and selling over a million copies in the United States.

Additionally, the song used an edited compilation of vocal parts that Wash recorded in June 1990 for an unrelated demonstration tape.

[21] The case was eventually settled in 1994 and as a result of the settlement, Sony made an unprecedented request to MTV to add a disclaimer that credited Wash for vocals and Zelma Davis (who lip-synched Wash's vocals in the official music video) for "visualization" to the "Gonna Make You Sweat" music video.

The album's lead single "Do You Wanna Get Funky" featured a collaboration of Wash, C+C Music Factory, Zelma Davis, and Trilogy.

In the same year, Wash also recorded and released a cover of Jean Knight's "Mr. Big Stuff" for the soundtrack of American sports comedy-drama film D2: The Mighty Ducks.

The album's lead single "Keep on Jumpin'", featuring a collaboration of Terry, Wash, and Jocelyn Brown, was released on June 24, 1996.

[26] Wash was also featured on Todd Terry's single "Ready for a New Day", which peaked at number twenty on the Dance chart.

In 2007, Gay Pimpin' with Jonny McGovern, gay-themed podcast, dedicated an episode to Wash and she obliged them with an extended telephone interview.

[26] In February 2015, Wash and Tony Moran released "Free People", which also reached number one on the Dance Club Songs chart.

In November 2017, Wash collaborated with Turkish singer Serhat, releasing a single with multi-versions of his Eurovision 2016 entry I Didn't Know.

[39] The song was featured on the musical film "Wholly Broken" for which Wash plays the role of a woman named "Rose".

[41] In March 2019, First Ladies of Disco (now composed of Wash, Clifford, and Norma Jean Wright) released their second single "Don't Stop Me Now".

First Ladies of Disco, a female group originally composed of Martha Wash, Linda Clifford, and Evelyn "Champagne" King, released their debut single "Show Some Love" on the label in 2015.

[18] In the same year, bills were introduced in the New Jersey and New York legislatures to require concert promoters to disclose whether pre-recorded material would be used on stage.

[18] Wash's activism and legal wranglings on behalf of recording artists also resulted in eventual federal legislation making vocal credit mandatory for all albums and music videos.

"[57] Wash has also been an activist for the fight against HIV/AIDS for more than thirty years after watching close-friend and music mentor Sylvester succumb to the disease.

Wash released a song "Light It Up", included on the 13th Carols for a Cure 2011 charity album to help raise funds benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.