Coolio, a well-known American rapper born Artis Leon Ivey Jr., has passed away.
He was 59.
The 1995 hit "Gangsta's Paradise" is the most well-known work by the Grammy-winning rapper, producer, and actor.
Jarel Posey, the rapper's longtime manager, confirmed that Coolio passed away on Thursday around 1 a.m. PT, Nigerian time.
A bathroom floor was where Coolio was found unconscious, according to a BBC report. Upon arrival, first responders declared him dead.
Even though there is no evidence of foul play, the police have been looking into his death.
He appeared to have experienced a cardiac arrest, according to Posey.
In 1987, Coolio released his debut single, "Whatcha Gonna Do?"
Along with Nu-Skool, he also cut the 1988 song "What Makes You Dance (Force Groove)".
In 1991, Coolio established contacts in the Los Angeles rap scene by joining the Maad Circle, a group led by the rapper WC.
It Takes a Thief, Coolio's first solo album, was released in 1994 after he signed with Tommy Boy Records.
For the 1995 movie Dangerous Minds, Coolio released the song "Gangsta's Paradise," which featured R&B singer L.V.
The song was created for the Michelle Pfeiffer-starring 1995 movie "Dangerous Minds."
It rose to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, becoming one of the most popular rap songs ever.
In 1995, it was the top single across all genres in the United States. The United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand were among the countries where it topped the charts as a result of its worldwide success.
‘Gangsta’s Paradise ‘was the second-best-selling single of 1995 in the U.K.
The song created controversy when Coolio claimed that comedy musician ‘Weird Al Yankovic had not asked permission to make his parody of ‘Gangsta’s Paradise, titled ‘Amish Paradise.
At the 1996 Grammy Awards, the song won Coolio a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance.
The song rides on the chorus and music of ‘Pastime Paradise’ by Stevie Wonder, which was recorded nearly 20 years earlier.
After the success of “Gangsta’s Paradise” in the mid-’90s, Coolio continued to grow in fame.
He recorded ‘Aw, Here It Goes!’ for the opening sequence of Nickelodeon’s ‘Kenan & Kel’, which he also appeared in.
His third album, ‘My Soul’, was released in 1997 and contained ‘C U When U Get There, which hit No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The album was certified gold but didn’t have the same effect as his first two records and thus became his last record with Tommy Boy.
Coolio released five more studio albums; ‘Coolio.com’, ‘El Cool Magnifico’, ‘The Return of the Gangsta’, ‘Steal Hear’ and 2009’s ‘From the Bottom 2 the Top’.
A talented actor, Coolio also appeared in dozens of films and TV shows throughout his career.
In 1995, he played himself on ‘Martin’ (1995).
His other acting credits include ‘Dangerous Minds’, ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996), ‘Batman & Robin’ (1997), ‘The Nanny’ (1998), ‘Tyrone’ (1999), ‘Midnight Mass’ (1999), ‘Charmed’ (2002), ‘Starving’ (2009), ‘Futurama’ (2001, 2010) and ‘Gravity Falls’ (2012).
According to his IMDb page, Coolio had three movies in the works: ‘Bobcat Moretti,’ ‘It Wants Blood 2’ and a TV movie ‘Vegas High’.