Coolio
Even though his greatest hit had the word "gangsta" in the title, Coolio wasn't really a gangsta rapper. Instead he was the accessible face of West Coast rap, a street-tough yet positive personality with a sense of humor and a social conscience, and a reassuring figure in the era of N.W.A. and 2 Live Crew. Like N.W.A., Coolio (born Artis Leon Ivey, Jr, and taking his name from a spin on Julio Iglesias) came straight outta Compton. He attended college and worked as a security guard, and did fall briefly into the gang lifestyle as a teen: He ran with the Crips but never became a member; he was briefly addicted to crack and served jail time for cashing a stolen money order. After the regional success of his first single "Watcha Gonna Do" he entered rehab and stayed straight thereafter, but his second single "You're Gonna Miss Me" didn't catch on. His debut album for Tommy Boy, It Takes a Thief was his breakthrough, drawing lyrically from the shadier parts of his past in a humorous, generally nonviolent way. The single "Fantastic Voyage," based on the Lakeside hit of the same name, was a smash, hitting Number Three in the Billboard hot 100. And it didn't hurt that the tune had a clever beach-party-themed video while MTV was still friendly to rap. The next single "Gangsta's Paradise" again threw a socially aware spin on gangsta themes, and again drew from a familiar song (in this case, Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise"). It was an even bigger hit, making Number One, and earning the honor of a Weird Al Yankovic parody ("Amish Paradise"). During 1995-96 Coolio was everywhere, scoring two soundtrack hits ("It's All the Way I Live (Now)" from "Eddie" (1995) and "Hit 'em High" from "Space Jam" (1996)) and collaborating with everyone from his former group WC and the Maad Circle to old-school funkers Kool & the Gang (whose singer JT Taylor sang on the Coolio hit "Too Hot"). He even did a theme for the hit series "Kenan & Kel" (Nickelodeon (1996-2000). This however was the peak of Coolio's fame. His third album My Soul yielded another hit with "CU When I Get There" (also based on an earlier hit-in this case a much earlier one, Pachelbel's "Canon in D"), but sales dropped off after that. 2006's Return of the Gangsta was only a modest hit despite a Snoop Dogg guest shot, and he stopped releasing albums after 2009's unsuccessful From the Bottom 2 the Top. He did however become a fixture on TV playing on his '90s celebrity, appearing on "Celebrity Wife Swap" (ABC 2012-15) and "Celebrity Cook-Off" (Food 2012-14). Coolio briefly made headlines after an arrest in September 2016: While travelling to Dallas to guest at a Vanilla Ice show, he was arrested at LAX for possessing a stolen gun, which was found when his carry-on bag was screened. Though he faced a three-year sentence, he got off with probation and community service. Coolio died on September 28, 2022 at the age of 59.
Photos
Coolio
Filmography
Movies
Credit | |||||
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71% |
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Bobcat Moretti | Self | - | 2022 |
No Score Yet |
|
Two Hundred Thousand Dirty | Manny (Character) | - | 2012 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Chinaman's Chance | Roger (Character) | - | 2008 |
100% |
|
Futurama: Bender's Big Score | Kwanzabot (Voice) | - | 2007 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Sides | Unknown (Character) | - | 2007 |
No Score Yet |
|
Three Days to Vegas | Unknown (Character) | - | 2007 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Grad Night | Michael Adkins (Character) | - | 2006 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Love Hollywood Style | Unknown (Character) | - | 2006 |
No Score Yet |
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Pterodactyl | Capt. Bergen (Character) | - | 2005 |
No Score Yet |
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A Wonderful Night in Split | Franky (Character) | - | 2004 |
No Score Yet |
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Dracula 3000 | 187 (Character) | - | 2004 |
No Score Yet |
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Gang Warz | Dunzio Day (Character) | - | 2004 |
No Score Yet |
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Stealing Candy | Brad Vorman (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Exposed | Big Heat (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet |
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Red Water | Ice (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet |
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The Beat | Emcee (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Tapped Out | Cool (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet |
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Code Hunter | Outlaw (Character) | - | 2002 |
No Score Yet |
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Gang Tapes | Original Music | - | 2001 |
11% |
|
Perfume | T (Character) | - | 2001 |
43% |
|
Get Over It | Self | $11.6M | 2001 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Gangland | Unknown (Character) | - | 2001 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Submerged | Jeff Cort (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
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China Strike Force | Coolio (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
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The Convent | Officer Starkey (Character) | - | 2000 |
14% |
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Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th | Principal Interest (The Administrator-Formerely-Known-As-Principal) (Character) | - | 2000 |
33% |
|
Leprechaun in the Hood | Self | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
|
Submerged | Unknown (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
|
Dope Case Pending | Unknown (Character) | - | 2000 |
40% |
|
Judgment Day |
Luther / |
- | 1999 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Bad Trip | Unknown (Character) | - | 1999 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | On the Line | Lt. Gil Suggs (Character) | - | 1998 |
8% |
|
An Alan Smithee Film: Burn, Hollywood, Burn | Dion Brothers (Character) | $43.9K | 1997 |
No Score Yet |
|
Phat Beach | Self | $1.3M | 1996 |
TV
Credit | ||||
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No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Love Goals | Self | 2020 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Teachers | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2017 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Celebrity Food Fight | Contestant | 2016 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Greatest Hits | Music Performer | 2016 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Recipe for Deception | Contestant | 2016 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Celebrity Wife Swap | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2013 |
100% | 97% | Gravity Falls | Unknown (Voice) | 2012 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Rachael vs. Guy Celebrity Cook-Off | Contestant | 2012 |
86% | 89% | Futurama | Kwanzaa-bot (Guest Voice) | 2001 2007 2010 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Coolio's Rules | Self | 2008 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Wendy Williams Show | Guest | 2008 |
57% | No Score Yet | Robbery Homicide Division | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2002 |
No Score Yet | 87% | Static Shock | Unknown (Guest Voice) | 2002 |
No Score Yet | 90% | Charmed | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2002 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | 18 Wheels of Justice | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2000 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Malcolm & Eddie | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1999 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Early Edition | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1999 |
No Score Yet | 73% | The Nanny | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1998 |
60% | No Score Yet | Muppets Tonight | Guest | 1997 |
No Score Yet | 67% | Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1996 |
53% | No Score Yet | Dangerous Minds | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1996 |
70% | 92% | Space: Above and Beyond | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1996 |
No Score Yet | 57% | Saturday Night Live | Music Performer | 1996 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Parent 'Hood | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1995 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Watcher | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1995 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | All That | Music Performer | 1995 |