LOS ANGELES: Coolio, the Grammy-winning rapper, died of a fentanyl overdose, according to his manager, six months after he was discovered dead at his friend’s house in Los Angeles at the age of 59.
Leon Ivey Jr Coolio was best known for his 1995 single “Gangsta’s Paradise,” which appeared on the album of the same name. The following year, that song, a massive hit featured in the film
“Dangerous Minds,” won a Grammy Award for best rap solo performance.
Coolio’s manager, Jarez Posey, said the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office informed the rapper’s family on Thursday that the singer died of a fentanyl overdose.
Posey stated that the rapper’s children intended to pay tribute to their father in future documentary and film projects.
Coolio was born in Pennsylvania in 1963 and began performing in the West Coast hip-hop scene after moving to Compton, California. In 1994, he released his debut album, “It Takes a Thief,” and had a Top Ten hit with the single “Lakeside.”
