Gangsta's Paradise

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This article is about the album. For the song, see Gangsta's Paradise (song).
Gangsta's Paradise
Studio album by Coolio
Released November 21, 1995
Recorded 1994-1995
Genre Hip-hop
West Coast hip-hop
Gangsta rap
G-funk
Length 64:25
Label Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records
Producer Coolio
Christopher Hamabe
Devon Davis
Doug Rasheed
Brian "The Wino" Dobbs
Coolio chronology
It Takes a Thief
(1994)		 Gangsta's Paradise
(1995)		 My Soul
(1997)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 4.5/5 stars[1]
Robert Christgau A−[2]

Gangsta's Paradise is the second album by rapper Coolio, released on November 21, 1995. The album contained three hits: "Gangsta's Paradise", which reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100; "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)", which reached number 5; and "Too Hot", which peaked at number 24.

Contents

[edit] Track listing

# Title Producer(s) Performer (s)
1 "That's How It Is" Coolio Coolio, Talkbox
2 "Geto Highlites" Christopher Hamabe, Devon Davis Coolio, 40 Thevz (backing vocals)
3 "Gangsta's Paradise" Doug Rasheed Coolio, L.V., Trinna Simmons (backing)
4 "Too Hot" Bryan Dobbs Coolio, J.T. Taylor
5 "Cruisin'" Christopher Hamabe, Devon Davis Coolio, Malika, Shaunna D. (backing)
6 "Exercise Yo Game" Jay Williams, Maurice Thompson 40 Thevz, Coolio, E-40, Kam
7 "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)" James Carter, Poison Ivey Coolio
8 "Smilin'" Dominic Aldridge, James Carter, Reece Carter (co-producer) Coolio, Baby G (backing)
9 "Fucc Coolio" Coolio Coolio
10 "Kinda High Kinda Drunk" Dominic Aldridge, James Carter, Danny Taylor (co-producer) Coolio
11 "For My Sistas" Oji Pierce Coolio, Lashann Dendy
12 "Is This Me?" Devon Davis Coolio, LV, Rated R
13 "A Thing Goin' On" Oji Pierce Coolio, Jeremy Monroe
14 "Bright As the Sun" Oji Pierce Coolio, Will Wheaton
15 "Recoup This" Spoon Coolio, Capucine Jackson (backing), P.S. (backing)
16 "The Revolution" Bryan Dobbs Coolio
17 "Get Up, Get Down" Bryan Dobbs Coolio, Leek Ratt, Malika, P.S., Ras Kass

[edit] Samples and interpolations

  • "Gangsta's Paradise" contains samples of "Pastime Paradise", performed by Stevie Wonder.
  • "Too Hot" contains an interpolation of "Too Hot", originally performed by Kool & The Gang.
  • "Cruisin'" contains an interpolation of "Cruisin'", originally performed by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles.
  • "Sumpin' New" contains samples of "Thighs High (Grip Your Hips More)", performed by Tom Browne, and "Wikka Wrap", performed by The Evasions.
  • "Smilin'" contains an interpolation of "You Caught Me Smiling", originally performed by Sly & The Family Stone.
  • "Kinda High, Kinda Drunk" contains interpolations of "Saturday Night" and "The Boyz in Da Hood"
  • "For My Sistas" contains an interpolation of "Make Me Say It Again Girl", originally performed by The Isley Brothers.
  • "A Thing Goin' On" contains an interpolation of "Me & Mrs. Jones".
  • "The Revolution" contains an interpolation of "Magic Night".
  • "Get Up, Get Down" contains an interpolation of "Chameleon", originally performed by Herbie Hancock.
  • The song "Gangsta's Paradise" is used in the film Dangerous Minds (1995).[3]
  • The first line of "Gangsta's Paradise" is taken from Psalm 23.

[edit] Certifications

Country Certification Date Sales certified
Canada[4] Platinum July 21, 1997 100,000
Germany[5] Gold 1996 250,000
Netherlands[6] Gold 1996 40,000
Sweden[7] Gold March 28, 1996 10,000
UK[8] Gold January 1, 1996 300,000
U.S.[9] 2 x Platinum April 10, 1996 2,000,000

[edit] Charts

[edit] Peak positions

Chart (1995–1996) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Albums Chart[10] 12
Austrian Albums Chart[10] 4
Belgian (Flanders) Albums Chart[10] 28
Belgian (Wallonia) Albums Chart[10] 14
Dutch Albums Chart[10] 9
Finnish Albums Chart[10] 11
French SNEP Albums Chart[10] 38
German Albums Chart[11] 6
New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart[10] 5
Norwegian Albums Chart[10] 24
Swedish Albums Chart[10] 16
Swiss Albums Chart[10] 2
UK Albums Chart[12] 18
U.S. Billboard 200[13] 9
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[13] 14

[edit] End of year charts

End of year chart (1996) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[14] 33

[edit] References

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Robert Christgau review
  3. ^ Dangerous Minds at IMDb
  4. ^ Canada certifications cria.ca (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  5. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank ('Gangsta%27s+Paradise')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank/?action=suche&strTitel=Gangsta%2527s%2BParadise&strInterpret=&strTtArt=alben&strAwards=checked. Retrieved January 12, 2009. 
  6. ^ Dutch certifications nvpi.nl (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  7. ^ Swedish certifications Ifpi.se (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  8. ^ UK certifications Bpi.co.uk (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  9. ^ U.S. certifications riaa.com (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Gangsta's Paradise, in various albums charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  11. ^ German Albums Chart Charts-surfer.de (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  12. ^ UK Singles Chart Chartstats.com (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  13. ^ a b Billboard allmusic.com (Retrieved January 12, 2009)
  14. ^ "Billboard Top 100 - 1996". http://longboredsurfer.com/charts.php?year=1996. Retrieved 2010-08-27. 
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