The group formed in New York City in 1993, when Amel Larrieux met Bryce Wilson while she was working at Rondor Music as a receptionist.
Larrieux left Groove Theory in 1999 to pursue a solo career, and was replaced by Makeda Davis, a songwriter and session singer/background vocalist who appeared on 1997 K-Ci & JoJo album Love Always and co-wrote rapper Amil's "I Got That".
Displeased with Columbia's track record at the time with urban projects, Wilson asked for a release from the label, causing the album to remain unreleased.
Larrieux began her solo career in her absence from the group, forming her own independent record label, Blisslife, to distribute her music.
[2] In an 2016 interview with music publication the Fader, Wilson revealed that the entire shelved album The Answer was heard and praised by rapper Jay-Z and Beyoncé at an impromptu studio listening session with Lupe Fiasco manager Chill Patterson, Wilson, and a few other people, after which Jay-Z began shopping songs from the shelved project to Beyoncé, Janet Jackson, and other artists/labels.