The celebrity tributes for late rapper Coolio keep pouring in, as the most recent one comes from sketch comedy artist Kel Mitchell. Taking to his Instagram on Thursday (September 29), Kel shared a sweet message for the “Gangsta Paradise” hitmaker, who was found dead in a friend’s bathroom earlier this week at the age of 59. The post included throwback clips (here) from Coolio’s guest appearances on Kel’s shows All That and Kenan & Kel. Kel also included a shout out for the hip hop artist creating the theme song for Kenan & Kel!
“Rest in Heaven @coolio!” Kel captioned it. “We recently spoke a few months ago laughing and having such a good time. So many great memories with you bro! That time first meeting you on All That cracking up in a Good Burger Sketch then you bringing me on stage after your performance to freestyle. Then later creating the legendary Kenan and Kel theme song for @kenanthompson and I.”
The actor went on to detail all the times Coolio supported him in his projects and even gave the 411 on the final conversation they had together. “Last thing you told me when we last spoke a few months ago you told me you loved how I keep things positive and to keep doing that,” Kel wrote. “I will Coolio and thank you for sharing your light and your talent with us all and thank you for inspiring so many in your lyrics. Be at peace in the hands of our Heavenly Father and praying God comforts your family during this time. Much love bro!!!”
The tribute comes after Weird Al Yankovic shared a sweet message for the artist, which was quickly noted by fans, as the pair once had a famous feud over Al’s parody of Coolio’s 1995 mega hit “Gangsta’s Paradise.” Coolio’s manager reportedly approved of Weird Al’s parody “Amish Paradise” before it was released, while Coolio claimed he was never made aware of it, per BBCNews.
Obviously, with the touching tribute, Weird Al was able to move past the feud. And, according to music writer Dan Ozzi, so was Coolio, as Dan shared a tweet about a past interview with the late star, who said he was in a good place with Weird Al at the time. “I let that go so long ago,” Coolio said, per Dan’s tweet. “Let me say this: I apologized to Weird Al a long time ago and I was wrong. Y’all remember that, everybody out there who reads this s***.”
Prior to his death, Coolio recorded new music and dialogue for an upcoming Futurama reboot, producer David X. Cohen confirmed to TMZ. The rapper was known to the original series, in which he appeared as Kwanzaabot.