[3] The record came to the attention of white supremacists in the Ku Klux Klan, who threatened Lyndell for associating with black musicians; as a result, she largely withdrew from the music business for the next 25 years.

[5] In 1993, American hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa recorded the song retitled "Whatta Man" for Runaway Love, an EP by En Vogue, who is credited as the featured group.

Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor wrote the rap lyrics and produced the version, with Cheryl James (Salt) also credited as one of the songwriters.

[10] Larry Flick from Billboard wrote that the "fierce, ruling rap divas dip into their fine Very Necessary album and pull out this wickedly funky hip hop jam."

He added further, "Loose and oh-so-appealing harmonies by En Vogue provide a kickin' framework for clever, lip-lickin' rhymes that melt into the track's butt-shaggin' beats.

"[11] James Earl Hardy from Entertainment Weekly felt in his review of En Vogue's EP, Runaway Love, that the song "prove [that] these divas have more in common with the Emotions and the Sweet Inspirations than with the Supremes.

"[12] Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report commented, "Whatta concept, pairing these goddesses of hip-hop with a killer track and some of the best lines heard in a long time.

[14] Ted Kessler from NME named it Unstoppable Hit Single of the Week, writing, "This takes En Vogue's "My Lovin'", puts it in a car, drives it off somewhere hot, sunny and sexy, slows it down, feeds it loads of funky guitar and sewns in some sassy rapping about how the ideal man treats Salt, Pepa and Spinderella.

[19] James Hunter from Vibe noted that En Vogue are "sounding proud as punch to play second fiddle, furnish Salt-N-Pepa with harmonic backdrops.

"[9] Writer Keith Boykin described the song portion, "Although most men are hos / He flows on the down low / Cuz I never heard about him with another girl," as if "rather than praise his faithfulness, the artists appreciate his discretion, while tacitly acknowledging his cheating."

[citation needed] New York magazine journalist Dinitia Smith wrote about the video: "Salt-N-Pepa have [sic] a warmth and sexual heat that make Madonna seem contrived and mechanical.

According to academic Nick Trujillo of California State University, Sacramento, the rap song may associate hypermasculinity "with combat sports such as [American] football."

A sub-unit of South Korean girl group I.O.I from Produce 101 sampled the hook of the Salt-N-Pepa version for their song "Whatta Man" which was released on August 9, 2016.