I pulled that sample out of РІР‚СљPastime Paradise,РІР‚Сњ and Paul was like, РІР‚СљWow, thatРІР‚в„ўs tight!РІР‚Сњ So I decided to sample it and make a beat with it. One day, I pulled out the Stevie Wonder record, Songs in the Key of Life, because thatРІР‚в„ўs one of my favorite albums. He had a record collection and I had a record collection, so we used to see who could pull the hottest sample out. L.V., singer: Oh, that scene was beautiful, man! The Pharcyde, Tha Alkaholiks, King T, South Central Cartel, me, Coolio, the 40 Thieves - we all used to hang out there at Doug and PaulРІР‚в„ўs place in Hollywood and just kick it, you know, have fun and produce music. Everybody used to come to our house all the time - it was a hangout spot.Р”В¬oolio: There was a studio at the house, so my managerРІР‚в„ўs clients could come and work for free. On the 20th anniversary of the songРІР‚в„ўs release, we asked some of the major players in the РІР‚СљGangstaРІР‚в„ўs ParadiseРІР‚Сњ story to look back on what was not just a defining moment in CoolioРІР‚в„ўs career, but also in the history of rap music and popular culture.Р”Вoug Rasheed, producer: I was roommates at the time with Paul Stewart, CoolioРІР‚в„ўs manager. alone, earning triple-platinum status and inspiring the popular РІР‚СљWeird AlРІР‚Сњ Yankovic parody РІР‚СљAmish Paradise.РІР‚Сњ ( Coolio failed to share the publicРІР‚в„ўs appreciation for the spoof at the time, though that particular beef has long been quashed.)

The song also went on to sell over 3 million copies in the U.S. РІР‚СљGangstaРІР‚в„ўs ParadiseРІР‚Сњ won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance (it lost out to SealРІР‚в„ўs РІР‚СљKiss From a RoseРІР‚Сњ for Record of the Year), and its video - directed by Antoine Fuqua, whose subsequent list of Hollywood credits includes the new Jake Gyllenhall film Southpaw - won MTV Video Music Awards for Best Rap Video and Best Video From a Film.

The single soared to the top of the pop charts in 16 countries, including the U.S., eventually becoming BillboardРІР‚в„ўs Number One song for 1995 - the first time that a rap song had ever held the distinction of being a year-end chart-topper on the Hot 100.Р”В«ut the accomplishments didnРІР‚в„ўt stop there. Released in August 1995 in conjunction with the Michelle Pfeiffer vehicle Dangerous Minds, and boosted by a memorable video that featured the actress and various clips from the film, РІР‚СљGangstaРІР‚в„ўs ParadiseРІР‚Сњ not only transcended its original soundtrack tie-in, but also managed to transcend the widely-perceived stylistic and commercial limitations of hip-hop. Distinguished by CoolioРІР‚Вs thoughtful lyrics and distinctive verbal flow, L.V.РІР‚в„ўs gospel-tinged wail and Doug RasheedРІР‚в„ўs starkly funky production, the song is a deeply affecting listening experience - and its hook, lifted from Stevie WonderРІР‚Вs 1976 track РІР‚СљPastime Paradise,РІР‚Сњ was absolutely impossible to shake. During the last five months of 1995, it was virtually impossible to go anywhere without hearing the soulful, streetwise strains of РІР‚СљGangstaРІР‚в„ўs ParadiseРІР‚Сњ blasting out of somebodyРІР‚в„ўs radio.

Gangsta rap made me do it wikipedia