Fantastic Voyage (Coolio song)

"Fantastic Voyage" is a song by American rapper Coolio. It was released in March 1994 as the third single from his debut album, It Takes a Thief. The song later featured on the album Fantastic Voyage: The Greatest Hits. It heavily samples the 1981 song, "Fantastic Voyage" by Lakeside.

"Fantastic Voyage"
Single by Coolio
from the album It Takes a Thief
ReleasedMarch 8, 1994 (1994-03-08)
Recorded1993
GenreWest Coast hip hop, G-funk, gangsta rap
Length5:32 (Main version)
4:08 (Radio version)
LabelTommy Boy Records
Songwriter(s)Norman Beavers, Marvin Craig, Brian Dobbs, Artis Ivey Jr., Fred Alexander Jr., Mark Adam Wood Jr., Tiemeyer McCain, Thomas Oliver Shelby, Stephen Shockley, Otis Stokes
Producer(s)Brian Dobbs
Coolio singles chronology
"I Remember"
(1994)		 "Fantastic Voyage"
(1994)		 "Mama I'm in Love Wit a Gangsta"
(1994)
Music video
"Fantastic Voyage" on YouTube

In 2018, Chrysler released a music video featuring Coolio called "Vantastic Voyage" to promote the Chrysler Pacifica minivan.[1]

Content

According to Allmusic's Jason Lymangrover, "With its infectious 'Slide, slide, slippity slide' chorus, it went unnoticed that his breakthrough single, 'Fantastic Voyage,' was actually a song about escapism."[2]

Here, as in the artists' "Gangster's Paradise," Coolio laments the realities of urban black poverty. He writes "Tryin' to find a place... where my kids can play outside without livin' in fear of a drive by."

Music video

The music video features Coolio napping on his front porch, when he gets a phone call from his friend Spoon that wakes him. Spoon asks about taking a trip to the beach, to which an annoyed Coolio responds "we ain't got no car" and hangs up on him. Suddenly a mysterious magician man with a '70s style suit, afro, and cane appears and turns the blue bicycle sitting upside down on Coolio's driveway into a blue 1965 Chevrolet Impala convertible car with hydraulics. Now with a means of transportation, Coolio and his crew head to the beach, while picking up people along the way by letting them ride inside the car's trunk. The rest of the video features Coolio at the beach helping the crowd of passengers out of the trunk of the car for a beach party, which includes people of all races and a mariachi band. At the end of the video, the car is transformed back into a bicycle on Coolio's driveway and Coolio is woken up again by a phone call from Spoon, showing that the trip was all just a dream. Coolio reminds him that they have no car, telling him to quit calling, and hangs up. Then Coolio looks at the bike to see the dream car's blue custom California license plate saying "FNTX VYG", based on the song's name, is hanging off the bike's front wheel hub. This leaves him wondering if the events were really a dream and dresses the stage for the video "I Remember."

Cast & credits
  • Directed by: F. Gary Gray
  • Cinematographer: Daniel Pearl
  • Produced by: Craig Fanning
  • Production Manager: Tina Lucarelli and Jack Sawyers
  • First assistant director: Greg Webb
  • Premiere: May 1994, 10:00 a.m.

Official versions[3]
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Radio version) 4:08
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Timber radio edit) 4:01
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Timber mix) 5:32
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Dave Bellochio street mix) 4:20
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (QD III remix) 4:30
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (QD III bonus beats) 4:30
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Funk master flex remix) 4:04
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (J-ski remix) 4:13
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Flex clean radio edit) 4:04
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Flex bonus beats) 2:06
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (A cappella) 3:38
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Timber clean radio edit) 4:01
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (J-ski clean radio edit) 4:13
  • "Fantastic Voyage" (Flex instrumental) 4:54

Chart performance

"Fantastic Voyage" peaked at number twelve on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, two on Hot Rap Singles[4] and three on the Billboard Hot 100.[5] The song sold one million copies domestically and received a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America.[6][7]

Charts

References
  1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaXJhTFwcG8
  2. allmusic ((( It Takes a Thief > Overview ))) Allmusic. Retrieved on 2008-10-05
  3. "Coolio - Fantastic Voyage - Releases - Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved 2013-04-17.
  4. allmusic ((( It Takes a Thief > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles ))). Allmusic. Accessed October 5, 2008.
  5. Artist Chart History - Coolio Billboard. Retrieved on 2008-10-05
  6. "Best-Selling Records of 1994". Billboard. BPI Communications. 107 (3): 57. January 21, 1995. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  7. "American certifications – Coolio – Fantastic Voyage". Recording Industry Association of America.
  8. "Australian-charts.com – Coolio – Fantastic Voyage". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  9. "Offiziellecharts.de – Coolio – Fantastic Voyage". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  10. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Coolio" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  11. "Charts.nz – Coolio – Fantastic Voyage". Top 40 Singles.
  12. "Swedishcharts.com – Coolio – Fantastic Voyage". Singles Top 100.
  13. "End of Year Charts 1994". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
  14. "Billboard Top 100 - 1994". Archived from the original on 2009-03-01. Retrieved 2010-08-27.


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