Michel Martelly and club owner in Haiti in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Martelly became associated with the neo-Duvalierist Haitian military and police, including figures such as police chief Michel François, and he agreed with the 1991 Haitian coup d'état against Jean-Bertrand Aristide. In 1995, after Aristide had been restored to office, Martelly's name appeared on a hit list of coup supporters, and he stayed away from Haiti for almost a year. During this time, he released a song, "Prezidan" (on the album "Pa Manyen"), "an exuberant ditty that called for a president who played compas". However, he did not run
Michel Martelly Olivier, Sandro, Yani, and Malaika. In 2006, Martelly announced his unofficial retirement from recording and performing, but two years later announced a return to music with a new single, "Magouyè", and the video/short film, "Bandi Legal yo ki rive". He is a cousin of Port-au-Prince hotel manager and musician Richard Morse. In April 2012, Martelly was flown to the United States for treatment of what was later diagnosed as a pulmonary embolism. It was attributed to the immobilisation of his arm necessitated by recent shoulder surgery. In December 2018, a video surfaced of the former President being assaulted by a