TKA

TKA
TKA circa 1990 (Tony, Kayel, and Angel)
Background information
Origin	New York, New York, United States
Genres	Latin freestyle House music
Years active	1984–1991; 2001–present
Labels	Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records
Associated acts	George Lamond
Members	Angel Vasquez Aby Cruz Tony Ortiz
Past members	K7 India
Notable instruments
Drum machine Electronic keyboard Sequencer

TKA is a Latin freestyle trio that was prominent in the 1980s and early 1990s, mainly in New York City and Miami, Florida. Its members originally were Tony Ortiz, Louis "Kayel" Sharpe, and Alejandro "Aby" Escoto—the original lead singer. Due to tension within the group between Kayel and Aby, the latter was later replaced by Angel "Love" Vasquez, which allowed Kayel to assume the lead vocals. The acronym TKA represents their collective initials. Early on, the group's members would state in interviews that the acronym stood for "Total Knowledge in Action" as well. All of TKA's members are of Puerto Rican descent. Many Freestyle fans consider them the kings of that genre, although Kayel seemingly downplayed this label, having jokingly stated "There are no kings in freestyle. There is only one king in it—myself."

Hailing from New York City, TKA was discovered when it sang at a sweet sixteen party in an East Harlem church in 1984. Record producer and manager Joey Gardner, who attended the party, was impressed with the trio, and, with his help, signed with Tommy Boy Records. The group originally consisted of Tony, Kayel, and Ralph " Aby" Cruz—who was replaced by Angel Vasquez after the release of the single "Tears May Fall". Although not widely known, India was a member of the group in its earliest days, as well. The group's first single was "One Way Love", a major hit in the Latin club communities of New York, Chicago and Miami, which was followed by "Come Get My Love". An album was then recorded, titled Scars of Love, which included the first two singles. The title track was then released as a single, followed by "Tears May Fall", "X-Ray Vision", and "Don't Be Afraid".

In 1989, the soundtrack of the film Lean on Me featured the single "You Are the One", which hit #91 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The album Louder Than Love was released in 1990, accompanied by its first single, "I Won't Give Up on You", a slick contemporary R&B groove that was quite a departure from their earlier material, stylistically. 1991 saw even more diversity of sound with the release of the singles "Crash (Have Some Fun)", a house music hit that featured a hip hop vocal by Michelle Visage of the group Seduction; "Give Your Love to Me" produced by Platinum producer Frankie Cutlass and "Louder Than Love".