Sad news to report…
Acclaimed rapper Coolio has passed away at the age of 59!
Coolio’s longtime manager, Jarez, says Coolio went to the bathroom at his friend’s house, but when he didn’t come after a while … the friend kept calling for him, and eventually went in and found Coolio laying on the floor.
TMZ.com reports the friend called EMTs, who arrived and pronounced Coolio dead on the scene — and Jarez tells us the paramedics suspect he suffered cardiac arrest. An official cause of death has not been determined.
Born Artis Leon Ivey Jr. in Monessen, Pennsylvania south of Pittsburgh, Coolio moved to Compton, California, where he went to community college. He worked as a volunteer firefighter and in airport security before devoting himself full-time to the hip-hop scene.
His career took off with the 1994 release of his debut album on Tommy Boy Records, “It Takes a Thief.” It’s opening track, “Fantastic Voyage,” would reach No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
A year later, “Gangsta’s Paradise” would become a No. 1 single.
Story developing….
Coolio won a Grammy for best solo rap performance for “Gangsta’s Paradise,” the 1995 hit from the soundtrack of the Michelle Pfeiffer film “Dangerous Minds” that sampled Stevie Wonder’s 1976 song “Pastime Paradise.”
He was nominated for five other Grammys during a career that began in the late-1980s.
Coolio’s agent Sheila Finegan confirmed the rapper’s death…
“He touched the world with the gift of his talent and will be missed profoundly,” Finegan said in a statement. “Thank you to everyone worldwide who has listened to his music and to everyone who has been reaching out regarding his passing.”
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