Saxophonist merging music and cybersecurity

Ryeem Fletcher can spend one part of his day breathing life into a saxophone and another learning how to keep digital systems secure.
At 23, the saxophonist is in his third year at the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech), pursuing cybersecurity with ambitions of becoming a cybersecurity analyst. It is a career path seemingly far removed from the music industry in which he has spent years developing his craft. Fletcher, however, does not see the two as competing careers. In a world where music is increasingly intertwined with technology and artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the creative landscape, he hopes the two sides of his life can eventually become one.
“Cybersecurity has always been my passion since the latter part of high school,” Fletcher told THE STAR. But while that interest was already there, the COVID-19 pandemic gave him much to ponder.
“During the pandemic, the music was kind of slow because, you know, the lockdown and those stuff,” he recalled. With the entertainment industry disrupted by restrictions on gatherings and live events, Fletcher began thinking about what another major disruption could mean for his livelihood. 
“Initially I wanted to become an engineer, so I had that in mind, but since the pandemic everything just sparked different in my mind,” Fletcher said. Rather than leaving music behind, however, he chose to pursue another interest while continuing the craft. 
Fletcher grew up surrounded by both music and traditional professions. His sister is an artiste, and his first love was the drums, which he eventually played in church. But Fletcher also grew up watching relatives pursue other careers.
“In my family, there are nurses and doctors. I grew up seeing my cousins being educators, nurses and doctors, so getting a degree is always something important in the family,” he said. 
His journey with the saxophone began almost by chance. Entering high school, Fletcher had his eyes on the drums. But his music teacher, Nigel Powell, noticed something else.
“He saw that I could play the recorder more fluently, so he chose the saxophone,” Fletcher recalled. He began playing the saxophone in eighth grade and has now spent approximately eight years developing his craft. It did not come easily.
“A lot of people think the saxophone is easy, you just take it and blow into it and that’s that, but it’s a lot,” Fletcher said. He recalled that it was not until roughly four years into learning the instrument that he began feeling confident in his ability. Building a name as a young musician presented another challenge.
“Over the years, I started developing my sound, and that’s how I was able to get the recognition,” he said. There was also the challenge of convincing some clients of the value behind the finished product.
“I have faced clients where they don’t think that the price is worth it because they don’t know what it takes to produce this sound,” Fletcher said.
Those experiences, coupled with the sudden slowdown brought by the pandemic, helped reinforce the value Fletcher placed on building another professional path. 
But cybersecurity is becoming more than simply another avenue for the young musician. As music becomes increasingly tied to the digital world, Fletcher sees an opportunity for his technical knowledge to eventually serve the industry he already knows.
“I can bring music and cybersecurity together. In the cybersecurity world, we protect entities for different companies,” he said. For Fletcher, the possibilities could extend to helping protect the digital products and platforms musicians increasingly rely on.
“Say a musician published an app where he produces his music, he will need security for that. I’m thinking of bringing them together,” he said, adding that he is particularly interested in the protection of artistes and their work.
“Pertaining to where it comes to securing your product, the publishing of music, I would love for it to be copyright, safe for artistes,” Fletcher said. “I think the industry can definitely benefit from my knowledge.”
The intersection between his two interests has become even more relevant to Fletcher as AI develops and becomes increasingly capable of producing creative content.
“Since AI is coming in and taking over, the gap will be opened much faster than we think,” he said.
Fletcher said he has already seen AI tools produce music that can stand alongside work from skilled producers. Yet, for all his interest in technology, the saxophonist believes there remains something distinctly human about creating music.
“As musicians we can identify the weaknesses when it comes to the quality of the music,” he said. “You will know if it is an actual producer creating the music from his soul compared to AI-generated.”