An alternative rap trio blending jazz influences with a quirky sensibility, Ugly Duckling shares stylistic ground with De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, the Pharcyde, the Jungle Brothers, and Digable Planets. The group came together in Long Beach, a Los Angeles suburb, during 1995 when members Dizzy, Young Einstein, and Andy Cat began working jointly. They adopted the name Ugly Duckling to reflect their sense of being outsiders within the mid-'90s Southern California hip-hop landscape, where gangsta rap prevailed as the leading West Coast style; the trio deliberately steered clear of the macho posturing and violent, threatening lyrics that defined that movement. The single "Fresh Mode" appeared in 1998, moving more than 3,000 copies and generating early attention. Later the same year the group signed with 1500 Records, then a subsidiary of Interscope/Universal, and completed their self-titled debut EP, Fresh Mode, issued in 1999. Journey to Anywhere arrived the following year. Taste the Secret came out in 2003. The trio subsequently joined the Brooklyn-based independent hip-hop label Fat Beats, releasing Bang for the Buck in 2006 and Audacity in 2008.
