The group's name is derived from Andy García's portrayal of an Italian American sharpshooter in The Untouchables. In high school, a friend of D'wayne Wiggins joked that the teacher would call him "Tony, Tony, Tony" if they saw the way he was dressed. Originally, the band went by "Tony, Tony, Tony" as a joke, until they realized it had a nice ring to it.
"It Never Rains (In Southern California)" is the title of a song recorded by the American R&B group Tony! Toni! Toné!. It is in no way related to the Albert Hammond song from 1972. This song peaked at Number One on the Billboard Hot R&B Songs charts in 1990 for two weeks, and thirty-four on the Billboard Hot 100.