Knowing the pressures of the music industry first-hand, Mills initially hesitated to include his own children, Calvin III and Tamara Dee, in the group.
[2] The Puppies soon attracted the interest of Columbia subsidiary Chaos Recordings and were bought out of their contract with Joey Boy, signing a $400,000 deal with Chaos/Columbia.
The first of the singles, "Funky Y-2-C", was released in the spring[3] and became the duo's biggest hit, reaching the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 and selling over 280,000 copies.
[4][5] The Puppies spent the summer on tour, particularly at schools and radio-sponsored outdoor concerts where they could reach a young audience.
[1] Under Convertible Records, a partnership formed between Pandisc and Mills II in 1996 prior to the release of Recognize,[7] the former duo's Big Boy continues to release music under the name DJ Big Boy, including occasional guest vocals from Tamara Dee.