5th Dimension (with Blue Kusaka)
Music by Blue Kusaka / Lyrics by Nicholas Nyemah

“The 1/4 dimension’s time and the 1/5 is of the spirit.
I’m spending all my 1/4’s on this level till I clear it.”

I went to church one night and the pastor started reading from the book of 1 Peter, which begins: “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia . . .” Then he was like “‘Strangers’ . . . that means we’re all ALIENS.” I was like “what?!” I pulled out a pen and paper and spent the rest of the time paraphrasing the books of Peter, adding an outer space theme. I named the song “5th Dimension” based on a notion that the spiritual realm is a dimension that transcends space and even time. The three verses sat around for over a decade. I never wrote a hook, figuring I might get to it eventually.

Then, one day, Blue gave me a CD with a bunch of beats he had been working on. Track 7 was titled “Seventh House” and it featured The 5th Dimension singing Aquarius on the hooks. When I heard it, I knew it was time for these words to meet their destiny.

The idea of “spending all my quarters [fourths] on this level till I clear it” stems from the days when I spent, quite literally, all my money and all my time on what brought me the most satisfaction; Space Invaders, Pac-Man, and Centipede at Noah’s Arcade, Double Dragon at the bowling alley, etc. The quote embodies the theme of the song, which is the importance of focusing one’s time, energy and passion on the most significant things in life, things beyond the boundaries of space and time.

5TH DIMENSION:

Get the full album:
St. Nicodemus tha Lonestar
THE PEN, THE VIEW, THE ANGELS
Amazon | CD Baby | iTunes

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BONUS MATERIAL:

As a kid in LA, my bedroom walls were covered with Bo Jackson posters.  I was heartbroken when the Raiders (and Rams) deserted me for other cities, and I still haven’t forgiven them. When I moved to Maryland as an adult, naturally, I pledged allegiance to the home team.

Around the start of the 2012-13 NFL playoffs, I pulled out an instrumental from Blue and thought it sounded downright anthemic. Inspired by Baltimore’s greatest rapper, Edgar Allan Poe, I laid this one down for the Ravens. It got some spins on local radio, and I’d like to think it contributed to the team’s Super Bowl victory that year.

A special shout out to two of the rarest, most radiant maidens I know: Lenore L. (Blue’s wife haha) and my sister Natalie Wachen a.k.a. Boardwalk Empire’s Lenore White (who made Omar start liking ladies). Now that cat’s Baltimore.

Dial the seven digits… wait… wtf is THIS?!?!

Inspiration for 5th Dimension:

Gang Starr – You Know My Steez
BoogieMonsters – Altered States of Consciousness
Digable Planets – Examination of What