Coolio returns back to Australia for his 10-date national tour later this month, with the legendary Grammy Award-winning rapper performing with a live band across Australia. The Compton rapper/ actor/ chef/producer has well and truly cemented his place in hip-hop history with his 1995 worldwide smash single Gangsta’s Paradise featuring Californian R&B singer L.V. of South Central Cartel.
The Gangsta’s Paradise single itself has sold over six million copies worldwide off his 4x Platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated 17-track album of the same name that also featured Ras Kass, E-40 and WC and Ice Cube’s cousin Kam. The single went #1 in eighteen different international markets over the 1995/1996 period and has broken numerous records worldwide with the hit four-minute song. The track famously was absent of any profanity due to a request from Stevie Wonder, whose chorus and instrumentation off his 1976 song Pastime Paradise was sampled for the August 1995 released hit on Tommy Boy/Warner.
Coolio has spent much of the last year touring throughout the Middle East, Europe, America, Australia and further extensively as part of the I Love The 90s international arena tour with the likes of Salt N Pepa, Tone Loc, Young MC, TLC, Biz Markie, Rob Base and Color Me Badd. Now in his mid-50’s, Coolio has reached that classic iconic stage in his career and his broad international appeal has extended his hugely successful career in hip-hop longer than most artists could ever imagine.
Coolio gained his major break in the music industry way back in 1991 as a part of WC and the Maad Circle’s now classic debut album Ain’t a Damn Thang Changed, with the release peaking at #52 domestically and featuring MC Eiht and Ice Cube. WC and the Maad Circle was comprised of WC, Chilly Chill, Big Gee, Sir Jinx, Coolio and DJ Crazy Toones (RIP) and was widely influential in early to mid-90s LA hip hop as well as significantly beyond. Many of the groups’ members in addition have gone on to have hugely influentially solo / collaborative careers with the likes of Ice Cube, Mack 10, Kool G Rap, Rage Against The Machine, Isaac Hayes, Xzibit, Kurupt, Gucci Mane, Ice-T, Bun B and alike.
