Sitting in his apartment, Mason Hetrick can’t fight the urge to make music. He doesn’t have to travel far to do just that. Five feet from Hetrick’s bed is his recording studio.

“I’m always there,” Hetrick said. “The studio is always looking at me like, ‘make music.’”

The Wayne State College student produces music under the name Mr. Bomb, a nickname his late father was given while playing bass in a local band. His father died when Hetrick was 3 years-old but has always been a source of inspiration for the musician.

Music is more than simple entertainment, for Hetrick. He believes humans are meant to feel every emotion and that music is the greatest gateway towards doing so. “Music has shown me that I’m in control of my emotions, but it’s also shown me that it can affect my emotions if I allow it to,” Hetrick said.

He questions what life is without music and concludes that it isn’t much. “Music allows space for the things you don’t want to talk about and the emotions you don’t want to feel, like hurt,” Hetrick said.

The 20-year-old believes that the right song will find him at the right time. “Any song you ever hear, someone was doing that, someone took the time to make that,” Hetrick said. “There’s got to be a reason it’s coming into my life right now.”

He first got interested in making music when he realized he was good at it. Freestyling in the car with his friends soon had him wondering how much a microphone would cost. The first one he bought was $54. Hetrick continued to be involved in music throughout his time in high school and into college.

Growing up, Hetrick was also active in a variety of sports. He took his athletic experience to WSC where he majored in sports management. Still, he wasn’t convinced he’d found his calling. Eventually he would fall back on an old friend, music.

First, he changed his major to electronic media. Then, he found out how to get streaming royalties for his music. Hetrick said the decision to change majors was monumental. Not only did he come to realize that music was his purpose in life, but that it could also be a viable career.

In the music industry, Hetrick said, it can feel like a song hasn’t officially been released until there’s a music video. With that knowledge, he took a minor in digital film. Reflecting on the courses he has taken at WSC, Hetrick is confident in his abilities to make a career off of his passion.

Hetrick said he lives by the phrase, “If you know the question you can find the answer.” This motto helped him find DistroKid, a digital distributer service that over 25,000 bedroom-musicians subscribe to, according to Forbes magazine.

When making his account with DistroKid, Hetrick chose to create his own record label, Headway Beats. He saw an opportunity to help but also learn from other talented artists. This allows music created under Headway Beats to be streamed on major platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music.

Now a junior at WSC, Hetrick radiates the type of positive energy that can only be described as contagious. Hap-gu Morgan knows this contagious energy well.

The first time she met the musician she was inspired by his positive, outgoing attitude and was eager to collaborate with him on some music.

Hetrick had collaborated with a handful of artists before and knew that with the right energy, music could bridge the awkward gap that often exists between strangers.

Morgan said Hetrick is inspiring to work with because he’s serious about his craft. “Sitting down and talking to him about what he wants to do is cool,” Morgan said. “You don’t often meet people who are as passionate about what they do as Mason is.”

Hetrick and Morgan have several songs in the works they are planning to release together. “I have my own notebook of things I write,” Morgan said. “We’ve been through a lot of the more recent stuff and some of that got put into projects we’re working on.”

Hetrick’s collaborate spirit extends beyond the music studio.

“I’ll collaborate with anyone who has talent,” Hetrick said.

The original Headway Beats logo was drawn by an art student at WSC. Hetrick paid them $15 and translated the drawing into Photoshop himself. The new Mr. Bomb logo came about in the same way.

Hetrick will be producing the soundtrack for the WSC student film “Love Sick” which will premiere November 19. With his current degree plan, Hetrick has been immersed in the film since the beginning of its production.

He’s sketched storyboards, given creative input and worked as one of the top sound technicians for the film.

Mark Albers, the producer of “Love Sick” said it’s nice when a production has a soundtrack composed specifically for it.

“It helps establish that mood and environment of the film better,” Albers said. “If you have an outside source where you get your music from it will never truly be part of the film.”

Recording movie soundtracks is one of many steps into musical diversity Hetrick has taken.

Casual listeners might be quick to label him as a hip-hop and rap singer, but he also likes incorporating the classic rock and soul style music he grew up with into his work.

Looking into the future, Hetrick is concerned with finding likeminded artists and pursing his passion over everything else.

“Some people define success as a lot of money, success for me includes a lot of happiness,” Hetrick said. “I’m somewhere in between.”