[3] She entered the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal at age nine and studied there for five years.

[2] In a report broadcast on French television, Martin explained that she chose the name "Cœur de pirate" to appear not "as an isolated musician, but to get a band identity from the start".

[10] In February 2009, Martin attracted wider media attention when a photographer from Quebec City, Francis Vachon, used the song "Ensemble" as the soundtrack to a viral video on YouTube entitled "Time lapse of a baby playing with his toys", leading to coverage on Good Morning America, Perez Hilton's website, The Globe and Mail, and elsewhere.

On 27 March 2011, Martin revealed via her Facebook page that she was to return to the studio to commence work on her second album the following day.

After announcing her pregnancy in February 2012, Martin stopped touring during the second half of the year and gave birth to a daughter in September.

In early 2013, Martin returned from her hiatus with a music video for "Place de la République", the first for which she acted as director, and an international tour beginning in March.

[17][18] In 2013, she recorded music for the fifth season of the Canadian drama series Trauma, with a soundtrack album released on 14 January 2014.

Martin has appeared in concert with French singer Julien Doré, performing a duet of the Rihanna hit "Umbrella".

[citation needed] Martin contributed vocals on "Brutal Hearts", the fourth track on the 2010 Bedouin Soundclash album Light the Horizon.

Frontman Jay Malinowski and Martin subsequently collaborated under the band name Armistice, releasing a five-track self-titled album on 11 February 2011.

In 2010 Martin also contributed vocals to the second track of David Usher's album The Mile End Sessions, titled "Everyday Things".

[citation needed] She appears on the track "Voila les anges", a cover of the song recorded originally in 1988 by Gamine on the 2012 album Couleurs sur Paris by Nouvelle Vague.

[citation needed] Martin contributed vocals for "Peace Sign" by Canadian synth-pop artist Lights, on the acoustic version of her 2011 album Siberia, released on 30 April 2013.

[32] On 29 February 2012, Martin announced on Twitter and Facebook that she was expecting a girl with her fiancé, Alex Peyrat, a tattoo artist.

[35] On 16 June 2016, in an op-ed for Vice magazine's Noisey, Martin came out as queer as a response to the shooting at Pulse, a gay club in Orlando.