Coolio’s manager and friend over several years Jarez Posey confirmed the news to the AFPwithout giving additional details.
Posey, speaking to the celebrity news website TMZsaid Coolio was found unconscious in the bathroom of a friend’s house Wednesday afternoon.
Coolio began his career as a rapper in California in the late 1980s, but his global fame came in 1995 with the release of his hit song “Gangsta’s Paradise” as part of the soundtrack to the movie “Dangerous Minds.”
The artist was awarded a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance as a Solo Artist at the following year’s ceremony.
Featuring a musical excerpt from Stevie Wonder’s “Pastime Paradise” (1976), the song sold millions of copies worldwide, topping the music charts in 16 countries and becoming the number one song on the Billboard chart in 1995.