By Cynthia Akande
American rapper, Coolio, best known for his chart-topping 1995 song “Gangsta’s Paradise,” has died, his manager said Wednesday.
The 59-year-old Grammy-winning musician passed away in Los Angeles. No cause of death was immediately provided.
Coolio’s friend and long-standing manager Jarez Posey confirmed the news to AFP without providing additional details.
Posey told US media outlet TMZ that Coolio was found unresponsive in the bathroom of a friend’s house on Wednesday afternoon.
“He touched the world with the gift of his talent and will be missed profoundly,” Sheila Finegan, Coolio’s manager said in a statement to The Washington Post.
Born Artis Leon Ivey Jr on August 1, 1963, in Pennsylvania, the artist spent most of his life in Compton, California, attending community college and working jobs including airport security before finding success in rap.
His single “Fantastic Voyage” off his debut studio album “It Takes a Thief” charted as high as three on the Billboard Hot 100.
But it was “Gangsta’s Paradise” the following year that would make Coolio a household name.
