FILE – Coolio appears at the 2015 ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., on June 25, 2015. Coolio, the rapper who was among hip-hop’s biggest names of the 1990s with hits including “Gangsta’s Paradise” and “Fantastic Voyage,” died last year because of fentanyl, his manager said Thursday, April 6, 2023. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles County coroner’s office says “Gangsta’s Paradise” rapper Coolio suffered an accidental death from the effects of fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine last year. The agency on Thursday also cited cardiomyopathy, a disease that makes it more difficult for the heart to pump blood to the body, as a “significant condition.” Investigators also determined Coolio’s severe asthma and cigarette smoking played a role in his death. Coolio’s former longtime manager Jarez Posey also confirmed the cause of death Thursday. Coolio died at the Los Angeles home of a friend on Sept. 28, 2022. He was 59.