Grammy-nominated rapper Mystikal will not record any hit albums for the next six years – at least not from outside prison walls.
Mystikal, whose real name is Michael Tyler, was sentenced to six years in prison and hard labor Thursday for sexual battery against a former hairdresser.
Using the stage name Mystikal, Tyler first received local recognition with No Limit Records and its founder, Master P. His debut for the label, “Unpredictable,” reached No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200 chart.
After leaving No Limit in 1999 for Jive Records, Mystikal’s career soared in 2001 when his fourth album, “Let’s Get Ready,” debuted at No. 1, fueled by the radio hit “Shake Ya Ass.”
Tyler, a New Orleans native, pleaded guilty to sexual battery charges as part of a plea agreement.
The agreement, which protected the victim from testifying in the Baton Rouge courtroom, reduced charges from aggravated rape and extortion. The judge reduced Tyler’s sentence from a possible 10 years to six.
According to testimony, the victim came to Tyler’s apartment expecting to do his hair. Tyler confronted her about $80,000 he accused her of stealing and told her he would not go to the authorities if she performed oral sex on him.
Tyler and two of his bodyguards, Leland Ellis and Vercy Carter, forced oral, vaginal and rectal sex on the victim.
The bodyguards also originally faced aggravated rape and extortion charges.
Plea agreements also reduced the bodyguards’ charges to sexual battery. Ellis received three years in prison and Carter received four.
State District Judge Tony Marabella said during sentencing that Tyler described the act as “consensual sex” and that “everyone was laughing and having a good time.”
Marabella watched a videotape of the attack the three men made. He said the victim was “degraded and terrorized.”
“The court is convinced that the defendant believes he is above the law and can take the law into his own hands,” Marabella said. “The only reason he feels remorse is because he got caught.”
Police handcuffed Tyler immediately after sentencing. Following his six-year term in jail, he will serve five years probation for related extortion charges.