Garcia formed the label after realizing that the many unsigned rappers making guest appearances on The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show, a program Bobbito co-hosted with DJ Stretch Armstrong on Columbia University radio station WKCR 89.9 FM, did not have a proper outlet for their talents.

Fondle 'Em, along with Rawkus Records, Solesides, Stones Throw Records and a handful of other small independent imprints helped jumpstart the underground hip hop scene in the late 1990s, on the east coast, establishing the subgenre as a viable branch of hip hop culture & rap music.

Many of the songs on The Cenubites originated as demo tapes the duo made for “The Stretch Armstrong/Bobbito Show,” as well as outtakes from the Ultramagnetic MCs' "The Four Horseman" project.

(Later, both demand from fans, and Kool Keith's resurging popularity, led Fondle 'Em to reissue the project as The Cenobites LP, this time on cd as well as vinyl.)

- Brian Coleman, CMJ During the late 1990s, Fondle ‘Em began to establish itself as a highly respected independent record label.

[citation needed] Certain titles, particularly Siah and Yeshua DapoED's self-titled EP and the Juggaknots' album Clear Blue Skies, fetch high prices in online auctions and at swap meets.