Iconic Rapper Coolio Passes Away At 59

Coolio (Photo: Denis Makarenko / Shutterstock.com)

COOLIO has died at the age of 59, according to TMZ. 

The rapper, who experienced success in the '90s, was visiting a friend when he passed away. His longtime manager JAREZ said COOLIO went to the bathroom and never returned. His friend called EMTs, who arrived and pronounced the hip-hop star dead on the scene of cardiac arrest. An official cause of death has not been determined.

COOLIO, whose real name was ARTIS LEON IVEY JR., emerged on the L.A. rap scene in the late '80s, and scored a huge hit when he recorded "Gangsta's Paradise," a song based on an interpolation from STEVIE WONDER's "Pastime Paradise," for the soundtrack of the film, "Dangerous Minds." The song topped the pop charts for three weeks. His other hit was "Fantastic Voyage," which sampled the same song by LAKESIDE and went to #3 on the Hot 100 in 1994.

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