Coolio was a rapper and actor who won a Grammy Award for his 1995 No. 1 single “Gangsta’s Paradise.”
- Died: September 28, 2022 (Who else died on September 28?)
- Details of death: Died in Los Angeles of a heart attack at the age of 59.
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Hip hop career
Born Artis Leon Ivey Jr., Coolio began recording music in the late 1980s and joined the hip hop group WC and the Maad Circle. His solo breakthrough came in 1994, when he released the album “It Takes a Thief,” including the Top Ten single “Fantastic Voyage.” He followed its success with “Gangsta’s Paradise” the following year, recorded for the movie “Dangerous Minds” but then released as the lead single for his album of the same name. The song was a smash hit, becoming one of the most popular rap songs of all time and earning Coolio a Grammy Award and two MTV Video Music Awards. It inspired the Weird Al Yankovic parody “Amish Paradise” and was the best-selling single of 1995. Coolio had two other singles from the ”Gangsta’s Paradise” album: “1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin’ New),” which also won a Video Music Award, and “Too Hot.” In 1996, he recorded “Aw, Here it Goes,” the popular theme song to the TV show “Kenan & Kel.” His later singles included “It’s All the Way Live (Now)” and “C U When U Get There.”
Acting and other work
Coolio appeared in a number of movies and TV shows, often as himself but also as an actor. His movies include “Batman & Robin,” “An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn,” and “Leprechaun in the Hood.” On TV, he made appearances on shows including “Martin,” “The Nanny,” “Malcolm & Eddie,” and “Charmed,” as well as providing the voice of Kwanzaabot on “Futurama.” He starred in the reality show “Coolio’s Rules” and hosted the cooking show “Cookin’ with Coolio,” billing himself as “The Ghetto Gourmet.” Coolio also competed on the reality shows “Celebrity Big Brother” and “Fear Factor.” He was known for his signature hairstyle of chaotic cornrows.
Notable quote
“When I wrote ‘Gangsta’s Paradise,’ the very first thing that came out of my mouth, I freestyled. ‘As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,’ that whole first line, I freestyled it and I sat down and started writing it and I never once picked up my pen. I didn’t stop to think about anything. I wrote the whole song out without really thinking about it. So in a way, it was divine intervention because the song just came and I didn’t have stop to say, ‘Oh, lemme put this right here or right there.’ The only thing I had to do was after I finished it, there were a few curse words, I had to go back and take those out.” —from a 2014 interview for Vice
Tributes to Coolio
Full obituary: The New York Times
