Coolio: Gangsta's Paradise rapper dead at 59

US rapper Coolio, known for the iconic hit Gangsta's Paradise, has died at the age of 59.

His longtime manager Jarez Posey told US media the artist was at a friend's house and went to the bathroom, but was then found unresponsive on the floor.

Coolio started making music in the 1980s, but he cemented his place in hip hop history when he recorded Gangsta's Paradise in 1995.

The exact cause of his death has not yet been revealed.

However Mr Posey told TMZ, which first reported the news, that paramedics believed he had a cardiac arrest.

Coolio, whose real name is Artis Leon Ivey Jr, won a Grammy for Gangsta's Paradise, which was part of the soundtrack for the movie Dangerous Minds starring Michelle Pfeiffer.

The haunting track continues to be widely listened to and has just passed a billion streams on Spotify, according to his official website.

Over a career spanning four decades he recorded eight studio albums and won an American Music Award and three MTV Video Music Awards.

He was active right up until his death - Coolio was in the middle of a tour with other 90s stars including Vanilla Ice and Young MC, and they performed in Texas just a few days ago.

"I'm freaking out I just heard my good friend Coolio passed away," Vanilla Ice wrote on Twitter.