5th Child

Stephen Brown AKA 5th Child is a hip hop artist and producer from Jackson, Mississippi, who blends southern bravado with thought-provoking and soulful lyrics. 5th child has opened for international acts that include Drake, Snoop Dogg, Slum Village, Big Freedia, Afroman, and the Black Eyed Peas. In addition to releasing his own recordings, he has delved deeper into producing for artists of different genres and providing original scores for independent films, documentaries, and commercials.

5th Child produced, recorded, and authored lyrics for this original track, with additional vocals and lyrics by Zaire Love. (FULL LYRICS BELOW.)

THIS LAND is funded in part by a grant from South Arts with support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Additional support provided by the Mississippi Arts Commission.

"Well acquainted with the pain but maintaining to survive, Long as the river flows, I be flowing in my rhymes, ... it’s the divine architect keep my heart in check, The art affects us in the soul and here’s the artifacts..." – 5th Child

“Land Mass” by Zaire Love & 5th Child

ZAIRE:

Where the flowers grow on the magnolia tree,

And the summer heat brings you to your knees,

Where the breeze from the coast is one with the sea,

And the people down here say “Bless your heart, baby”

(Repeat)

Bless your heart baby, bless your heart (x4)

5TH CHILD:

I swear it’s something about that southern land,

Over-lookers couldn’t understand,

Stretched thin, yet & still we bounce back like a rubber band,

Haters trying to take my free but we’ve got other plans,

One day I’m gon’ plant my feet back on the motherland,

Close your eyes, feel the nature, it’s alive,

And the feeling’s so surreal, can’t explain, it’s just a vibe,

Well acquainted with the pain but maintaining to survive,

Long as the river flows, I be flowing in my rhymes,

I’m knowing it’s the divine architect keep my heart in check,

The art affects us in the soul and here’s the artifacts,

It all starts at the southern part of the map,

Then influence the globe, ain’t nothing harder than that,

We’re way smarter in fact than the stories that you heard about us,

Determination, invert the image, we learn and progress,

It’s all a process, rebuild and regrow,

When the values much more than the silver and gold,

See there’s stories passed down through the soil and the dirt,

And we rose from the ashes so we loyal to the Earth,

And we’re royal from our birth,

See the beauty of the landscape,

Gulf Coast waters crashing on the sandbanks,

It’s like a diamond but hidden in plain sight,

Gotta let the light shine, concealing it ain’t right,

So I take my time, turn the page, make a line,

On how it feels when I’m in a Mississippi state of mind

ZAIRE:

Where the garden grows high and the time moves slow,

And the river be long just get us on home to Mississippi,

Where they say…

Bless your heart baby, bless your heart (x4)