[6] Around mid-1998, Mike Cheng created LAME 1.0 as a set of modifications against the 8Hz-MP3 encoder source code.

After some quality concerns were raised by others, he decided to start again from scratch based on the dist10 MPEG reference software sources.

[7] Mark Taylor then started pursuing increased quality in addition to better speed, and released version 3.0 featuring gpsycho, a new psychoacoustic model he developed.

They also advised users to obtain relevant patent licenses before including a compiled version of the encoder in a product.

In the course of the 2005 Sony BMG copy protection rootkit scandal, there were reports that the Extended Copy Protection rootkit included on some Sony compact discs had portions of the LAME library without complying with the terms of the LGPL.