The blind Stevie Wonder has been known by America as an R&B icon since his early 1963 release of “12-Year-Old Genius”.

Stevie Wonder was born on May 13, 1950, in Saginaw, Michigan (Marquis Who's Who LLC. Coolio’s description of struggles between gangs was still similar in theme, but very different in meaning. Wonder’s “Pastime Paradise” reflection on discrimination between races was greatly altered by Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise. The song also alludes to their dream of one day living in peace. Coolio's “Gangsta’s Paradise” represents the hard-lived lives of gangsters in inner cities. The song also describes the hope for a future world free from discrimination. Stevie Wonder's “Pastime Paradise” reflects on the racial inequalities that America has struggled with for decades. Through the difference in the context of each writer’s life, these two interpretations of the same song are very different in meaning.īoth songs identify the struggle of life as being directly related to the evils of the world such as money and power. Both Coolio’s and Wonder’s songs gloomily display their views on society. Both Stevie Wonder and Coolio musically interpret their societies’ idea of paradise.

Depending on the time and location of the speaker, their ideal lifestyle may be a reality, or simply a dream of one. What one person may deem a paradise may well be a slum for others. One person's utopian world may not always be the same as their neighbor’s.

Coolio gangsta paradise key