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"Gangsta's Paradise" is a song by American rapper Coolio, featuring singer L.V.. The song was released on Coolio's album ''Gangsta's Paradise'', as well as the ''Dangerous Minds'' soundtrack in 1995. It samples the chorus and music of Stevie Wonder's 1976 song "Pastime Paradise". The song was listed at number 69 on ''Billboard's Greatest Songs of All-Time''〔(Billboard.com – Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time )〕 and number one biggest selling single of 1995 on U.S. ''Billboard''.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Top 100 Hits of 1995/Top 100 Songs of 1995 )〕 In 2008, it was ranked number 38 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The 100 Greatest Hip Hop Songs Ever - VH1 Blog Reality TV News and Gossip )〕 Coolio was awarded a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance, two MTV Video Music Award's for Best Rap Video and for Best Video from a Film and a Billboard Music Award for the song/album. The song was voted as the best single of the year in ''The Village Voice'' Pazz & Jop critics poll. The song has sold over 5 million copies in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Croatia alone,〔("Gangsta's Paradise" certifications ) RIAA – Gold and Platinum Searchable Database〕〔 and at least 5.7 million worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time. Coolio has performed this song live at the 1995 ''Billboard'' Music Awards with L.V. and Wonder, at the 1996 Grammy Awards with L.V., and also with Dutch singer Trijntje Oosterhuis. ==Background and writing== The song samples Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise", a song from his album ''Songs in the Key of Life''. "Gangsta's Paradise" uses the same melody, but a different orchestration of the same music. The song begins with a line from Psalm 23:4: "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.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Adventures in Missing the Point: ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’ )〕 "Gangsta's Paradise" is one of the few Coolio tracks that does not feature profanity. According to Coolio, the lyrics initially did feature swearing, but Wonder did not approve of it: "I had a few vulgarities...and he wasn't with that. So I changed it. Once he heard it, he thought it was incredible."〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Hot 100 55th Anniversary: The All-Time Top 100 Songs )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gangsta's Paradise」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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