In Pictures: Gangsta’s Paradise rapper Coolio dead at age 59

Coolio, who was among hip-hop’s biggest names of the 1990s with hits including Gangsta’s Paradise, died on Wednesday at the age of 59.

The US rapper, whose legal name was Artis Leon Ivey Jr, died at the Los Angeles home of a friend.

Coolio won a Grammy for best solo rap performance for Gangsta’s Paradise, the 1995 hit from the soundtrack of the Michelle Pfeiffer film Dangerous Minds.

The rapper also became well-known in the UK for his appearances on reality television.

The rapper was born in Pennsylvania, but later moved to Compton, California, where he released his first single in 1987.

He recorded Gangsta’s Paradise for the 1995 film Dangerous Minds, starring Michelle Pfeiffer, and it went on to become one of the most successful rap songs of all time.