Coolio during the 1999 Toyota Grand Prix Pro/Celebrity Race in Long Beach, Calif. Photo: SGranitz/WireImage.

Coolio will always be best known for “Gangsta’s Paradise,” but the Compton rapper was a staple of ’90s hip-hop before becoming a reality TV regular in the next decade. The 59-year-old artist, who died Wednesday at 59 after being found unconscious in a friend’s home in Los Angeles, according to TMZ, had other hits with ““Fantastic Voyage,” “1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin’ New)” and “C U When U Get There.”

The would-be volunteer firefighter before he be became successful with music also helped make hip-hop accessible to white suburbia. Kids growing up in the ’90s memorized 1995’s “Gangsta’s Paradise,” reciting it word for word at school: “As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death/ I take a look at my life and realize there’s nothin’ left.” The song was featured in the Michelle Pfeiffer film “Dangerous Minds,” about an inner city teacher trying to help her students. It was later parodied by Weird Al Yankovic, as “Amish Paradise.”

The song won a Grammy for Best Rap Solo in 1996. Coolio, whose name is Artis Leon Ivey, Jr., famously built the song from a sample of Stevie Wonder song “Pastime Paradise.” Much of his material in the ’90s was layered atop ’70s music, introducing his audience to a new song and an old one at the same time. On YouTube, “Gangsta’s Paradise” has more than 1 billion views. “C U When U Get There” was a rework of Pachelbel’s “Canon.”

Coolio was born in Pennsylvania and raised in Compton. He attended Compton Community College and worked as a volunteer firefighter and at an airport while pursuing hip-hop in the late ’80s and early ’90s.

According to his website, his eight albums sold more than 17 million copies. His most recent studio effort was 2009’s From the Bottom 2 the Top. Coolio also recorded the theme song for Nickelodeon TV series “Kenan and Kel.”

The rapper was a frequent actor, with minor appearances in films like 1997’s “Batman & Robin,” and on TV in “Futurama,” “The Nanny” and “Charmed.” In the early 2000s, he had his own show on the Oxygen network, “Coolio’s Rules,” and more recently appeared on reality TV shows like “Celebrity Big Brother,” “Celebrity Chopped.”

He continued to perform, and one of his final performances came at Riot Fest in Chicago on Sept. 18.

TMZ reported that Coolio was at a friend’s home in L.A. on Wednesday when he went to the bathroom. When he did not return after some time, friends broke down the door and found him unconscious. They called 911 around 4 p.m. and paramedics were not able to revive him at the scene.

No cause of death was initially reported. He is survived by his ex-wife and six children.