Gangsta's Paradise (song)

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"Gangsta's Paradise"
Single by Coolio featuring L.V.
from the album Gangsta's Paradise, I Am L.V., and Dangerous Minds soundtrack
Released August 8, 1995
Format CD single, cassette, 12"
Recorded 1994-1995
Genre West Coast hip hop
Gangsta rap
Length 4:00
Label Tommy Boy Records
Writer(s) Coolio
Doug Rasheed
Larry Sanders
Stevie Wonder
Producer Doug Rasheed
Certification 3x Platinum (RIAA)
Coolio singles chronology
"It Takes a Thief Bitch"
(1994)		 "Gangsta's Paradise"
(1995)		 "Mama I'm in Love wit a Gangsta"
(1995)
Music sample
Coolio feat. L.V - "Gangsta's Paradise"

"Gangsta's Paradise" is a rap song by Coolio featuring L.V. The song was released on the Coolio album Gangsta's Paradise, as well as the Dangerous Minds soundtrack in 1995. Coolio was awarded a Grammy for the song/album. The song was voted as the best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll.

It sampled the chorus and music of the song "Pastime Paradise" by Stevie Wonder (1976). Wonder performed the song with Coolio and L.V. at the 1995 Billboard Awards.

The song was also listed at number 69 on Billboard's Greatest Songs of All-Time[1] and number one biggest selling single of 1995 on U.S. Billboard.[2] In 2008, it was ranked number 38 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.

Contents

[edit] Background and writing

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.

[edit] Lyrics and music

The music is a reworking of Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise", a song from his album Songs in the Key of Life. "Gangsta's Paradise" uses the same tune, and a different orchestration of the same backing music. Coolio changed the lyrics to be more relevant to life on the streets.

The song begins with a line from Psalm 23:4 from the Bible: 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.

Many of the lyrics are very dark and tragic and are meant to be a criticism of the violence and tragedy of the "gangsta" life. The choral lines (sung by L.V.) Tell me why are we so blind to see / That the ones we hurt are you and me offer an especially plaintive self-criticism.

This song is one of the few Coolio tracks which does not feature profanity.

[edit] Music video

The music video for the song was directed by Antoine Fuqua of Propaganda Films, and featured Michelle Pfeiffer reprising her earlier role in Dangerous Minds.

When Coolio won the Best Rap Video at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1996, he said in a press conference that Bone Thugs-n-Harmony deserved the award for "Tha Crossroads".

[edit] Chart performances

The single reached number one in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Austria, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand, making it Coolio's most successful single. Following Coolio's appearance in the UK TV show Celebrity Big Brother 2009 Gangsta's Paradise re-entered the UK singles chart peaking at #31. In the United States, the single spent twelve weeks in the top two of the Billboard Hot 100, of which three were spent at #1 and nine at #2, putting "Gangsta's Paradise" in joint fourth place for the most weeks spent at #2 by a single in the chart's history.

[edit] Parodies, covers and samples

  • 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 only does parodies by artists that he has spoken with directly, rather than through intermediaries. Photos from the XM Satellite Radio booth at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show suggest Yankovic and Coolio may have made amends.[3]
  • Another parody of "Gangsta's Paradise" is Paul Shanklin's "Al Gore Paradise", in which Shanklin sings in the voices of Al Gore and Bill Clinton. The Choral Line as sung by Shanklin (as Clinton) goes, Tell me why is it / so hard to see / If he's really a man, or just a tree.
  • boy band Blue used a sample of the instrumental for their single "Curtain Falls".
  • Dr. Doug Beach has also recorded a music video for his own surreal parody, titled "Grapester Paradise".
  • Turkish rock band MaNga also covered the song in English.
  • Korean hip hop group DJ DOC did a Korean version of the song, although some of the lyrics have been modified.
  • Russian band Sturman George (Штурман Жорж) used a sample of the instrumental for their single "Ausweis" ("Аусвайс").

[edit] Sales records and awards

Billboard

  • Billboard Year-End Chart-Toppers 1995
    • Top Hot 100 Single number one
    • Top Hot 100 Single Sales number one (2.5 million copies) (2x platinum)

Grammy Awards

MTV

[edit] Track listings

CD single
  1. "Gangsta's Paradise" — 4:00
  2. "Gangsta's Paradise" (instrumental) — 3:49
CD single bonus tracks
  1. "Gangsta's Paradise" - 4:02
  2. "Fantastic Voyage (Original Version)" - 4:05
  3. "Mama I'm In Love Wit A Gangsta (Clean Radio Mix)" - 4:09
  4. "Gangsta's Paradise (Instrumental)" - 3:50
CD maxi
  1. "Gangsta's Paradise" — 4:00
  2. "Gangsta's Paradise" (instrumental) — 3:49
  3. "Fantastic Voyage" (album version) by Coolio — 4:04

[edit] Charts and sales

[edit] Peak positions

Chart (1995/96) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart[4] 1
Austrian Singles Chart[4] 1
Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart[4] 1
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[4] 1
Canadian RPM Singles Chart[5] 29
Danish Singles Chart[6] 1
Dutch Top 40[7] 1
Eurochart Hot 100 1
Finnish Singles Chart[4] 1
French SNEP Singles Chart[4] 1
German Singles Chart[8] 1
Irish Singles Chart[9] 1
Italian Singles Chart 1
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart[4] 1
Norwegian Singles Chart[4] 1
Swedish Singles Chart[4] 1
Swiss Singles Chart[4] 1
UK Singles Chart[10] 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[11] 1
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks[11] 2
U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40[11] 2
U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream[11] 17

[edit] Year-end charts

End of year chart (1995) Position
Australian Singles Chart[12] 1
Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart[13] 4
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[14] 6
Canada Dance (RPM)[15] 45
Dutch Top 40[7] 23
French Singles Chart[16] 7
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[17] 1
End of year chart (1996) Position
Austrian Singles Chart[18] 6
Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart[19] 16
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[20] 8
Swiss Singles Chart[21] 15

[edit] End of decade charts

Chart (1990–1999) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[22] 13

[edit] Certifications

Country Certification Date Sales certified
Austria[23] Platinum January 8, 1996 30,000
Germany[24] 2 x Platinum 1996 1,000,000
Netherlands[25] Platinum 1995 60,000
Norway[26] 4 x Platinum 1996 40,000
UK[27] Platinum November 1, 1995 600,000
U.S.[28] 3 x Platinum February 23, 1996 3,000,000

[edit] Chart successions

Order of precedence
Preceded by
"You Are Not Alone" by Michael Jackson		 Billboard Hot 100 number one single
September 9, 1995 - September 23, 1995 (3 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Fantasy" by Mariah Carey
Preceded by
"A Kind of Christmas Card" by Morten Harket		 Norwegian VG-Lista number one single
42/1995 - 2/1996 (14 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Jesus to a Child" by George Michael
Preceded by
"Fairground" by Simply Red		 United Kingdom Number 1 single
October 28, 1995 - November 4, 1995 (2 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"I Believe"/"Up on the Roof" by Robson & Jerome
Preceded by
"Stayin' Alive" by N-Trance feat. Ricardo Da Force		 Australian ARIA number one single
October 22, 1995 - January 14, 1996 (13 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Jesus to a Child" by George Michael
Preceded by
"Fantasy" by Mariah Carey
"One Sweet Day" by Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men		 New Zealand RIANZ number one single
October 29, 1995 - December 17, 1995 (8 weeks)
January 14, 1996 (1 week)		 Succeeded by
"One Sweet Day" by Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men
Preceded by
"Lucky Love" by Ace of Base		 Finnish number one single
44/1995 - 1/1996 (9 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Jesus to a Child" by George Michael
Preceded by
"Het is een nacht... (Levensecht)" by Guus Meeuwis & Vagant		 Dutch Top 40 number one single
November 4, 1995 - December 9, 1995 (6 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Ademnood" by Linda, Roos & Jessica
Preceded by
"Waterfalls" by TLC
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson		 Swiss number one single
November 5, 1995 - December 3, 1995 (5 weeks)
December 17, 1995 (1 week)
January 21, 1996 - February 11, 1996 (4 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson
"Children" by Robert Miles
Preceded by
"Boombastic" by Shaggy
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson		 Eurochart Hot 100 Swiss number one single
November 11, 1995 - January 13, 1995 (10 weeks)
January 27, 1995 - February 17, 1995 (4 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Earth Song" by Michael Jackson
"Spaceman" by Babylon Zoo
Preceded by
"Het is een nacht... (Levensecht)" by Guus Meeuwis & Vagant
"Ik ben een vent" by Jimmy B		 Belgian (Flanders) number one single
December 2, 1995 (1 week)
December 16, 1995 - December 30, 1995 (3 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Ik ben een vent" by Jimmy B
"Knockin'" by Double Vision
Preceded by
"Je sais pas" by Céline Dion
"Dieu m'a donné la foi" by Ophélie Winter		 French SNEP number one single
December 2, 1995 - February 17, 1996 (12 weeks)
March 2, 1996 (1 week)		 Succeeded by
"Dieu m'a donné la foi" by Ophélie Winter
"Spaceman" by Babylon Zoo
Preceded by
"You Are Not Alone" by Michael Jackson		 Belgian (Wallonia) number one single
December 2, 1995 - March 2, 1996 (14 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Spaceman" by Babylon Zoo
Preceded by
"Knockin'" by Double Vision		 Austrian number one single
December 17, 1995 - February 11, 1996 (8 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Spaceman" by Babylon Zoo
Preceded by
"The Sign" by Ace of Base		 Billboard Hot 100 Number one single of the year
1995		 Succeeded by
"Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)" by Los Del Rio

[edit] References

  1. ^ Billboard.com - Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time
  2. ^ Music Outfitters' Top 100 Hits of 1995
  3. ^ Weird and COOLIO?!?!? » Yank Blog
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Gangsta's Paradise", in various singles charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved February 21, 2008)
  5. ^ "Top Singles - Volume 62, No. 13, October 30, 1995". RPM. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?brws_s=1&file_num=nlc008388.2794&type=1&interval=24&PHPSESSID=c6btf3r8hs459qqt5ln3o3dcv5. Retrieved 2011-01-13. 
  6. ^ Billboard January 20, 1996. Billboard. http://books.google.com/books?id=3g4EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA47&dq=Billboard%20%22denmark%22%20%22everything%20but%20the%20girl%22&hl=da&pg=PA47#v=onepage&q=Billboard%20%22denmark%22%20%22everything%20but%20the%20girl%22&f=false. Retrieved 2010-11-30. 
  7. ^ a b "Single top 100 over 1995" (in Dutch) (pdf). Top40. http://www.top40.nl/pdf/Top%20100/top%20100%20-%201995.pdf. Retrieved 19 April 2010. 
  8. ^ "Coolio singles, German Singles Chart" (in German). musicline. http://www.musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Coolio/single. Retrieved 19 April 2010. 
  9. ^ Irish Single Chart Irishcharts.ie (Retrieved February 21, 2008)
  10. ^ "Gangsta's Paradise", UK Singles Chart Chartstats.com (Retrieved August 4, 2008)
  11. ^ a b c d Billboard Allmusic.com (Retrieved August 4, 2008)
  12. ^ 1995 Australian Singles Chart aria.com (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  13. ^ 1995 Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  14. ^ 1995 Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  15. ^ Canada Top 50 Dance Tracks of 1995
  16. ^ 1995 French Singles Chart Disqueenfrance.com (Retrieved January 30, 2009)
  17. ^ "Billboard Top 100 - 1995". http://longboredsurfer.com/charts.php?year=1995. Retrieved 2010-08-27. 
  18. ^ 1996 Austrian Singles Chart Austriancharts.at (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  19. ^ 1996 Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  20. ^ 1996 Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  21. ^ 1996 Swiss Singles Chart Hitparade.ch (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  22. ^ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. http://books.google.co.kr/books?id=9w0EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&lr&rview=1&pg=RA1-PA4#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved October 15, 2010. 
  23. ^ Austrian certifications ifpi.at (Retrieved August 1, 2008)
  24. ^ "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=single&strAwards=checked. Retrieved August 4, 2008. 
  25. ^ Dutch certifications nvpi.nl (Retrieved December 9, 2008)
  26. ^ Norwegian certifications Ifpi.no (Retrieved August 4, 2008)
  27. ^ UK certifications Bpi.co.uk (Retrieved August 4, 2008)
  28. ^ U.S. certifications riaa.com (Retrieved August 4, 2008)

[edit] External links

Coolio
Albums
Compilations
Singles
Related articles
Billboard Year-End number one singles (1980–1999)
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