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Clarence Ronnie Keaton, known professionally as T La Rock, was born on 16 September 1961 in New York City and emerged from the Bronx as an early MC and break‑dancer. He entered the recording scene in 1984 with the single "It's Yours"-a collaboration with DJ Jazzy Jay that became the first release on the fledgling Def Jam label and established a foundational sound for old‑school hip‑hop. In 1985 he issued the EP He's Incredible, followed by the 1987 album Lyrical King (From The Boogie Down Bronx), which featured tracks such as "This Beat Kicks" and "Scratch Monopoly". The 1988 single "Flow With The New Style" and the 1989 releases "Come And Give It To Me" and "Housin' With The T's" expanded his catalogue. After a period of relative quiet, Keaton returned with The Lost Tapes in 2000 and The Only Way Is Up in 2004, both issued on Fresh/Sleeping Bag. His early work, particularly "It's Yours", has been sampled by artists including Public Enemy, Nas, and the Beastie Boys, and featured in the soundtracks of the Grand Theft Auto video games. Keaton continued to perform internationally, including a 2008 tour of Brazil, and remained active in recording projects into the 2020s.
