It can also be used to create and manage discussion lists by the use of an included plug-in called Dada Bridge, which requires a cron task.

Dada Mail handles Closed-Loop Opt-in subscriptions and Closed-Loop Opt-out unsubscriptions, sending complex announce-only and/or discussion mailing list messages, archiving/viewing/searching/resending/syndicating (rss, atom) sent messages.

Dada Mail was initially written in December 1999 and released as version 1.0 in January 2000, between Justin's first and second semester at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

The name of this specific program was changed on December 1, 2003, after Justin Simoni received a letter from a lawyer representing Mediaplex Inc. that the name was in violation of their trademark.

Dada is a direct reference to the early 20th century cultural movement.