Rapper Mystikal has been arrested on charges of first degree rape, felony domestic abuse by strangulation and other charges in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The 51-year-old man, real name Michael Tyler, was arrested on Sunday night after local police spoke to a person who claimed to have been sexually assaulted at a nearby hospital.
Tyler, who scored a worldwide hit in 2000 with Shake Ya Ass and was later nominated for two Grammy Awards, served a six-year sentence in 2004 after being found guilty of sexual assault and extortion.
Tyler pleaded guilty to forcing her hairdresser to perform what a judge called “continuous sexual acts” after accusing her of stealing $80,000 worth of checks. The woman denied stealing the money.
In 2012, Tyler was jailed for three months following an arrest for felony domestic abuse, which was later referred to by Tyler’s attorney as an “unfortunate incident” between two domestic partners “who have worried about each other for 10 years.” The victim was the mother of his two children.
In an April 2021 interview with the Associated Press, Tyler talked about changing his life and taking a different approach with his music.
“When I look back and listen to the music, man, he was a nasty rapper,” he said. “A lot of my music now, I picture myself rapping it to God and if I can rap it, I’m proud.”