Music is a massive cornerstone of society. As many high schoolers listen to hours of music every day, Raphael Guizonne, also known as Flyy the Bird, is creating his own music while in high school. 

From a young age, Guizonne has been surrounded by music. Lessons in guitar and piano helped establish his understanding of music theory, which is the study of the practices and possibilities of music.

Guizonne started releasing his music in 2017 with another senior, Jacob Jeong, who goes by the name NovaRed. Jeong hopes to attend a city school to make as many connections in the music industry as possible. 

“Raph and I started music sometime near the end of 7th grade. For me, I was mostly inspired by The Weeknd and Drake. At first, Raph was inspired by Metro Boomin,” Jeong said.

Jeong highly praises Raphael’s work and is very proud of his growth in music. 

“I think Raph’s music is really good. I appreciate how he wants his music to be original and how creative his music is,” Jeong said. 

In 2022, Flyy the Bird really started to take off. His YouTube channel reached a total of 399.8k views and 366.8k minutes watched with a total of 9k subscribers. His top five songs include “Not So Bad,” “Is it Somebody Else,” “Conversation,” “Islands,” and “No Destination-Freestyle.” 

Famous twitch streamer, ImDontai, who has 1.7 million subscribers, even reacted to his song “Not So Bad” and loved it.

“Choosing the right beat is the first step. Whether it’s making it or finding it online, I look for specific elements in each one,” Guizonne said. “As far as the recording process, I usually record melodies throughout the beat and keep my favorite ones. I then structure the melodies to make the song format. The last thing I actually do is write the lyrics to the melodies.” 

Guizonne works on his music from his home studio, including equipment such as a laptop, microphone, sound isolator, and audio interface. He spends around seven-ten hours a week in that room. 

Any service or feature from Flyy the Bird starts at $80 but could rise depending on the level of the request. Flyy the Bird has featured on many different songs with other artists. 

“I try to release new music every few weeks, so the next release should be sometime in February. I’m also trying to create a format for a project,” Guizonne said. 

Flyy the Bird’s last release was “Is it Somebody Else?” on January 15, 2023. Guizonne usually releases a mix of pop and rap music. 

Despite all the positives, students who participate in out-of-school activities sometimes fall behind in school because they put most of their time into those outside activities instead of their school work. 

Guizonne admitted that he sometimes struggles with balancing his music and schoolwork. However, he’s done very well in merging both into his daily routine. 

Raphael Guizonne won December Student of the Month and looks to improve his time management skills even further. 

“Sometimes, I do need to focus more on school or other things. Whatever happens, I think people will always find time to do what they love. That’s what I’m trying to implement,” Guizonne said. 

For now, Guizonne doesn’t plan to pursue music in college, but he didn’t rule it out. Still, Guizonne put himself out there early and offers a great outlet for other students who want to pursue music. 

“Not being afraid of putting your stuff out there is really important. It’s hard to dismiss any perception of others towards you, but it is necessary for an artist,” Guizonne said. “I’m really proud to be able to inspire people to get started in music. I get messages daily of how my music is impacting other people’s lives, and that is what keeps me motivated.”