'Retired' hip-hop artist drops beat after years break

After taking a break from his music career to focus on his faith and education, Manitoba artist Nick Betzing has released a sample beat to remind people of the reason for the season.

After graduating from Millar College of the Bible in Saskatchewan, Nick Betzing has transitioned from student to teacher and now works at the Millar College campus in Winnipeg. However, ever since getting a bachelor's degree in biblical studies, he has stepped away from the music scene as he enters his thirties.

"I don't really do a great deal of music anymore, but I was just inspired for the holidays and found a good beat," says Betzing.

It was his wife, Nicole, that convinced him to purchase the beat and make something out of it, especially since Home Alone is her favourite Christmas movie. Betzing that his wife is his biggest fan, always encouraging him to keep at it because "you never know how the Lord is going to use it."

The song, titled 'I Love Christmas,' is created on the beat sample from the movie, Home Alone, with Betzing's lyrics over top. He tried to keep the song true to the movie, but also have the message of why the season is celebrated in the first place.

In 2019, Betzing released an album titled Pilgrim was his last big project. Since then, he has slowed down and admits that his following has dwindled over the course of the past few years.

"I was together with Fresh IE, with his platform about a decade ago, and I probably had more influence that way and things sort of petered off as I began my career and my schooling."

The hip-hop artist says that he wrote that album for his church, hoping that they would find it encouraging.

Betzing keeps himself busy with pastoring, and working at the Millar but says that music will always be a hobby of his, saying he might drop more songs randomly in the next few years, saying it could pick up traction by listeners.

"I do recognize that there's a certain demographic there that maybe wouldn't, per se, show up in the church or in the bible college and so to some extent, it's also evangelistic."

The professor says that in the future he will continue to spread the gospel, no matter where he is in his life.