"Gangsta's Paradise" is a single by American rapper Coolio. Interpolating Stevie Wonder's 1976 song "

Pastime Paradise "Pastime Paradise" is a song by American musician Stevie Wonder, from the 1976 album ''Songs in the Key of Life''. The song was one of the first to use a synthesizer (the Yamaha GX-1) to sound like a full string section. Built initially from s ...

", and featuring American singer L.V., the single was released on August 1, 1995. Certified Platinum in October, the song was included on Coolio's second album ''Gangsta's Paradise'' in November 1995. The song was the number one biggest-selling single of 1995 on U.S. ''Billboard''. In 2008, it was ranked number 38 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' listed the song at number 100 in their ranking of "100 Best Songs of the 1990s" in 2012. Coolio was awarded a Grammy for

Best Rap Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance was awarded from 1991 to 2011, alongside the Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Previously, a single award was presented for Best Rap Performance. In 2003, this award was split into separate a ...

, two

MTV Video Music Award The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video categor ...

s for Best Rap Video and

Best Video from a Film The MTV Video Music Award for Best Video from a Film was first awarded in 1987, recognizing the best videos whose songs were a part of a movie soundtrack or featured in a film. As time went on, though, music videos taken from movie soundtracks beca ...

and a ''Billboard'' Music Award for the song/album. The song was voted as the best single of the year in ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...

Pazz & Jop Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper ''The Village Voice'' and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year abs ...

critics' poll. The song has sold over five million copies in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany.RIAA – Gold and Platinum Searchable Database
/ref> Coolio performed this song live at the 1995 ''Billboard'' Music Awards with L.V. and Wonder, and at the

38th Annual Grammy Awards The 38th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 28, 1996, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. The awards recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year. Alanis Morissette was the main recipient, being awarded four trophies, i ...

with L.V.

Background and writing

The artists co-wrote the song with their producer Doug Rasheed, with Stevie Wonder receiving writing credits for the sampling of his song "

" from his 1976 album ''

Songs in the Key of Life ''Songs in the Key of Life'' is the eighteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder. A double album, it was released on September 28, 1976, by Tamla Records, a division of Motown. It was recorded primarily at Crys ...

''. The song begins with a line from Psalm 23:4: "As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death", but then diverges with: "I take a look at my life and realize there's nothin' left." Adding to some of the religious overtones are choral vocals in the background. Coolio freestyled the first couple of lines, with the rest of the lyrics coming to him quickly in one sitting. He would later claim that the song ultimately came from a source outside himself, saying: "'Gangsta's Paradise' wanted to be born; it wanted to come to life, and it chose me as the vessel." Due to the sampling of Stevie Wonder's music, "Gangsta's Paradise" is one of the few Coolio tracks that did not contain any

profanity Profanity, also known as cursing, cussing, swearing, bad language, foul language, obscenities, expletives or vulgarism, is a socially offensive use of language. Accordingly, profanity is language use that is sometimes deemed impolite, rud ...

, as Wonder did not appreciate his song being paired with profanity. Coolio said, "I had a few vulgarities...and he wasn't with that. So I changed it. Once he heard it, he thought it was incredible."

Critical reception

Gangsta's Paradise received widespread acclaim. Bill Lamb from

About.com Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...

described the song as "riveting and atmospheric". James Masterton for

Dotmusic ''Dotmusic'' was a music webzine that existed as a standalone website from 1 June 1995 to December 2003. Initially intended as the web complement to the UK music industry trade magazine ''Music Week'', the site was relaunched in December 1998 as a ...

noted "the undoubted brilliance" of the track. David Browne from ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...

'' said it "may be the bleakest tune ever to top the pop singles chart." He added, "With its ghostly choir and lyrics about a gun-toting 23-year-old who kneels in the streetlight wondering if he’ll live to see 24, it examines the abyss with journalistic coolness." Tom Ewing of '' Freaky Trigger'' declared it as "complete pop greatness". Mike Wood from ''

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...

'' called it a "rap rhapsody". Pan-European magazine '' Music & Media'' commented: "Last year, this rapper hit paydirt with a reworking of Lakeside's ''Fantastic Voyage''. This time around, he pulls off the same trick with this tall tale founded on Stevie Wonder's ''

''. Unlike the original, which surprisingly never was a hit, this one was a US number 1 and has every chance of succeeding in Europe." A reviewer from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' rated it four out of five, adding: "An infectious release from Grammy-nominated rapper that challenges the assumed form of the genre. Number one in the US and could do big things here." The magazine's Alan Jones deemed it "a brooding and menacing track".

Chart performance

The single reached number one in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, Sweden,

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

, Switzerland, Australia, and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, making it Coolio's most successful single. In Australia, the song stayed at No. 1 for 14 weeks, a record that would only be broken 22 years later by

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently re ...

's "

Shape of You "Shape of You" is a song by English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran. It was released on 6 January 2017 as one of the double lead singles from his third studio album '' ÷'' (2017), along with "Castle on the Hill". The dancehall and R&B-infused ...

". Following Coolio's appearance on ''

Celebrity Big Brother 6 ''Celebrity Big Brother 2009'', also known as ''Celebrity Big Brother 6'', was the sixth series of ''Celebrity Big Brother''. It was broadcast on Channel 4, launching on 2 January 2009 and running for 22 days until 23 January 2009. The launch sh ...

'', it re-entered the UK singles chart peaking at No. 31. In the United Kingdom, "Gangsta's Paradise" is the first rap single to sell over a million copies. In the United States, the single spent twelve weeks in the top two of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, of which three were spent at No. 1 and nine at No. 2. The song was certified triple platinum by the RIAA on February 23, 1996, indicating 3 million copies sold. It has sold a further 1.8 million downloads in the US in the digital era . As of September 2022, the songs has sold 1.9 million downloads in US and has accumulated 763.1 million streams. Following Coolio's death on September 28, 2022, "Gangsta's Paradise" debuted two days later at number 5 on the UK Official Singles Sales Chart Top 100, and reentered the Official Top 100 Singles Chart on 7 October 2022 at number 55.

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

for the song was directed by

Antoine Fuqua Antoine Fuqua (born May 30, 1965) is an American filmmaker, known for his work in the action and thriller genres. He was originally known as a director of music videos, and made his film debut in 1998 with ''The Replacement Killers''. His critica ...

and featured Michelle Pfeiffer reprising her earlier role in ''

Dangerous Minds ''Dangerous Minds'' is a 1995 American drama film directed by John N. Smith and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer. It is based on the autobiography ''My Posse Don't Do Homework'' by retired U.S. Marine LouAnne Johnson, who in 1989 to ...

''. Initially Coolio was concerned with the video's treatment stating, "I wanted some low-riders and some shit in it; I was trying to take it 'hood'." Despite this he trusted Fuqua and was ultimately pleased with the final result. For the

, Coolio won the Best Rap Video at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1996. The music video hit one billion

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

views in July 2022.

Cast and credits

* Michelle Pfeiffer * Coolio * Directed by:

* Sound editor: Jeff Clark

Impact and legacy

In 1996, "Gangsta's Paradise" was named Best Rap 12-inch at the International Dance Music Awards in Miami. In 1999, ''

'' listed the song number 4 in their list of "Top Singles of the 90's
Rocklist.net..Jeff Brown's Village Voice Lists - Best of the '80's & '90's
In 2008, it was ranked number 38 on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop". In 2012, ''

'' listed the song at number 100 in their ranking of "100 Best Songs of the 1990s". In 2019, '' Billboard'' placed it at number 20 in their ranking of "''Billboard''s Top Songs of the '90s". Same year, ''Stacker'' placed it at number 19 in their list of "Best 90s pop songs". In July 2020, digital publication ''

The Pudding The Pudding is a digital publisher which produces data journalism for storytelling. Articles in the publication are visual essays which emphasize data visualizations and use fewer words than conventional journalism. The publication does not have c ...

'' carried out a study on the most iconic songs from the '90s and songs that are most known by Millennials and the people of Generation Z. "Gangsta's Paradise" was the twelfth song with the highest recognisability rate.

Parodies and covers

There are several parodies of the song, including " Amish Paradise" by "Weird Al" Yankovic, which was released the following year, reaching number 53 on the U.S. chart. Coolio claimed that he did not give permission for the parody, which led to disagreements between the two. Yankovic claimed that he had been told Coolio had given the go-ahead through his record label, and apologized. Because of this incident, Yankovic now seeks approval for song parodies through the artists themselves, rather than communicating through intermediaries. Coolio himself said in a 2011 interview that he had since "apologized to him (Yankovic)", further stating in a ''Rolling Stone'' retrospective that objecting to the parody "was probably one of the least smart things I've done over the years." L.V. released a solo version of the single in 1996 on his debut album, '' I Am L.V.'' This version did not feature Coolio, and featured additional lyrics written by L.V. himself, with rap lyrics written by Scarface and Dani Blooms. In 1996, the song was covered by

Battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

for the

electro-industrial Electro-industrial is a music genre that emerged from industrial music in the early 1980s. While EBM (electronic body music) has a minimal structure and clean production, electro-industrial tends to have a grittier, complex and layered sound ...

various artists compilation ''

Operation Beatbox ''Operation Beatbox'' is a various artists compilation album released on September 17, 1996 by Re-Constriction Records. The album compiles covers of popular hip hop tracks performed by electro-industrial acts, many of whom were part of the Re-Co ...

'' and their 1996 album, ''Distance''. American post-hardcore band

In Fear And Faith In Fear and Faith was an American post-hardcore band from San Diego, California. Formed in 2006, the group was signed to Rise Records and released three studio albums and two EPs. Their debut full-length, ''Your World on Fire'', being released ...

covered the song in 2008. Austrian

melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavine ...

band Artas covered the song in 2008 on the album ''The Healing''. In 2014, post-hardcore band

Falling in Reverse Falling in Reverse is an American rock band based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that formed in 2008 by lead vocalist Ronnie Radke while he was incarcerated. The band's original name was "From Behind These Walls", but it was quickly renamed to Falling ...

covered the song for the compilation album '' Punk Goes 90s Vol. 2''. The video included an appearance by Coolio. In 2015, Postmodern Jukebox produced a version in a 1920s jazz style. That same year,

hard rock band

Like a Storm Like a Storm is a band from Auckland, New Zealand, best known for combining heavy baritone guitar riffs and hard rock songs with didgeridoo. They are the highest charting New Zealand hard rock band in American radio history. Both of their tw ...

covered the song on their second studio album, ''Awaken the Fire''.

In other media

*It was first used in the 1995 drama film ''

'' and was featured in its soundtrack. *In 2011, the song featured in the comedy film ''

Bad Teacher ''Bad Teacher'' is a 2011 American comedy-drama film directed by Jake Kasdan from a screenplay by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky. Starring Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Lucy Punch, John Michael Higgins and Jason Segel, the film tells ...

''. *The song featured in the superhero film ''

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of med ...

''. *The song appears in the 2013 comedy film ''

Pain & Gain ''Pain & Gain'' is a 2013 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay and starring Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, and Anthony Mackie. It is based on the activities of the Sun Gym gang, a group of ex-convicts and bodybuilders convicted ...

''. *In 2019, the song was used in the original trailer for '' Sonic the Hedgehog''.

Accolades

Billboard * Billboard Year-End Chart-Toppers 1995 ** Top Hot 100 Single number one ** Top Hot 100 Single Sales number one (2.5 million copies) (2× platinum) Grammy Awards *

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

(nominated) MTV * MTV Video Music Awards 1996 ** Best Rap Video

Track listings

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

Rock on the Net
{{Authority control 1995 songs 1995 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Coolio songs Dutch Top 40 number-one singles European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Film theme songs G-funk songs Gangsta rap songs Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance Irish Singles Chart number-one singles MCA Records singles Music videos directed by Antoine Fuqua Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in Finland Number-one singles in Germany Number-one singles in Iceland Number-one singles in Italy Number-one singles in New Zealand Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Scotland Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Switzerland Number-one singles in Zimbabwe SNEP Top Singles number-one singles Songs about crime Songs about poverty Songs written by Stevie Wonder Songs written for films Tommy Boy Records singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles Ultratop 50 Singles (Wallonia) number-one singles