Michel began his career at an early age appearing in a Canadian television series (Rue des Pignons) and in TV commercials.

Rivard's career as a writer and composer began in earnest when he became a member of the theatrical group Quenouille Bleue, established in 1970.

In 1974, Rivard and other members of Théâtre Sainfoin, formed the group Beau Dommage (an old Québécois expression meaning "certainly" or "damn right").

Characteristic of Rivard's creative energy, he also put out his first solo album in 1977, Méfiez-vous du grand amour.

He also wrote scores for films, such as André Melançon's L'Espace d'un été, and Jean-Michel Ribes's Rien ne va plus.

He also acted playing the lead Yves Simoneau's Pourquoi l'étrange Monsieur Zolock s'intéressait-il tant à la bande dessinée?

Not wanting to miss an opportunity for some political humour, Rivard was a candidate for the satirical Rhinoceros Party of Canada in 1980 when he ran against former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

It was directed by Louis Saia and André Gagnon and won the Félix Video Clip of the Year for 1985 – awarded at the ADISQ (Association du disque, de l'industrie du spectacle québécois et de la vidéo)[1] award ceremonies.

At this point in time Rivard's prominence as a creative musician and poetic lyricist with a broad humanitarian vision put him on a par with the two great performers of a previous Québécois generation, Gilles Vigneault and Félix Leclerc.

He had his own variety television show, Studio TV5, for a couple of years, where he invited musicians, songwriters, and singers that he enjoyed performing with and jammed with them.