The trio, hailing from New York City, were discovered when they sang at a Sweet Sixteen party in an East Harlem church in 1984. Record producer Joey Gardner, who was at the party, was impressed with the group, and got the group signed to Tommy Boy Records. The group originally consisted of Tony, Kayel, and Ralph "Aby" Cruz, but eventually Aby was replaced by Raymond "Pito" "Angel" Vasquez (although not widely known, India was also one of the original members). Their first single was "One Way Love" which was a major hit among the Latin club community in New York, and followed up with many other hits, such as "Scars Of Love", "Tears May Fall", and "Come Get My Love."
The year, 1991 proved to be a very critical year for TKA, and for many Freestyle performers as well. TKA released their most important singles in 1991, "Louder Than Love", "Give Your Love To Me", and their House hit "Crash (Let's Have Some Fun)." Despite being very popular and very influential to the Freestyle genre, Tommy Boy requested that the band switch to pop instead of Freestyle. Rather than sacrifice their artistic integrity, the group released one more single, "Maria", which ironically proved to be their biggest hit, and then split up.
1988 album-cover for Scars of Love.Following the split, the members of TKA went on to pursue independent interests. Kayel recorded under the name K7 and had a hit Hip Hop record Swing Batta Swing which contained the lead hit single, "Come Baby Come." Tony started a successful production company in New York, and Angel joined the R&B group Goodfellas.
TKA reunited in 2001 and recorded the album Forever. The actual drop date for that album was November 6, 2001. Of the 12 songs contained on that album, only one was actually released as a single which was the smooth, House music song, "Feel The Music". The albums' promotion failures led to its poor success. Angel left the group afterwards and was replaced by popular Freestyle singer George Lamond. After the making of the anticipated album labeled 'TKA Featuring George Lamond' was completed, the group (along with George Lamond) decided to break up and go their own ways. The album was never released and only exists as demos that were given out to a few record companies. The name TKA still continues to live among its frontman K7, who performs the well known TKA hits in clubs throughout New York City. He also DJ's on New York's popular dance station 103.5 KTU. Though they've parted ways, they are still very popular in New York City, Chicago and Miami, and has had a sudden resurgence of popularity thanks to a recent Freestyle revival.
TKA were very notable for being heavily influential in the Freestyle genre, having presented an opportunity for many other Latino performers to create dance music. Among many Freestyle performers, TKA remain one of the most popular and influential, and its music are constant mainstays on Freestyle playlists.
The Way It Used to Be
TKA Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And all of the things I can't do without you
We meant almost everything to each other
But you felt the need to go find another
I thought you and I were right together
We would be forever true
You were so much more than love to me
The way it used to be
Back when you still loved me
Our love was just a game
How could you leave me this way?
The way it used to be
when all you had was me
Now all of that has changed
How could you treat me this way?
Now I find it very hard to continue
A part of myself was locked up within you
I could never think about tomorrow
And now i find it brings so much sorrow
I thought you and i were right together
We would be forever true
You were so much more than love to me
And i was just a toy to you
The way it used to be
Back when you still loved me
Our love was just a game
How could you leave me this way?
The way it used to be
When all you had was me
Now all of that has change
How could you treat me this way?
TKA's song "The Way It Used to Be" expresses the pain and heartbreak of a lost love. The lyrics speak of a past relationship that the singer is unable to forget or move on from. The first stanza starts with the singer admitting to still thinking about their former lover and listing all the things they miss about them. The second stanza speaks of the betrayal and hurt caused by the lover leaving for another person. The chorus repeats the title phrase and questions how the lover could have changed so much and treated the singer so poorly.
Throughout the song, the singer laments the loss of their identity without the lover and acknowledges the difficulties of facing tomorrow without them. The lyrics capture the feeling of being stuck in the memory and pain of a past relationship, unable to move on or fully heal. The singer's vulnerability and raw emotions make this song relatable to anyone who has gone through a heartbreak.
Line by Line Meaning
Sometimes, even now, I think about you
From time to time, even presently, my thoughts wander to you
And all of the things I can't do without you
All those things I simply can't manage to accomplish or experience without you
We meant almost everything to each other
We were almost everything to one another
But you felt the need to go find another
Nonetheless, you felt compelled to go search for another
I thought you and I were right together
I considered that you and I were a match made in heaven
We would be forever true
We would remain loyal to each other until the end of time
You were so much more than love to me
You meant more to me than just romance
And I was just a toy to you
But to you, I was just a mere plaything
The way it used to be
The memories of the past
Back when you still loved me
When you still had affection for me
Our love was just a game
Our romance was merely a pastime
How could you leave me this way?
How could you abandon me like this?
When all you had was me
When I was everything you had
Now all of that has changed
But now, everything is different
How could you treat me this way?
How could you act towards me in such a manner?
Now I find it very hard to continue
Now I am finding it excessively difficult to move on
A part of myself was locked up within you
A part of me was attached and dependent on you
I could never think about tomorrow
I was never able to visualize a future without you
And now I find it brings so much sorrow
And now, the future floods me with immense sadness
Contributed by Zoe V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Edgar Canas
My favorite song