Michel Martelly 2007, he moved back to Haiti. In the process, when the mortgage/financial sector crashed, he defaulted on more than $1m in loans, losing 3 properties to foreclosure. Following the magnitude 7.0 earthquake hits Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince in January 2010, Martelly ran for President of Haiti in the general elections. He benefited from his celebrity status as a musician, and held musical rallies called koudjay (musical political endorsement rallies), drawing crowds and media attention. He challenged the results as to whether he placed second, making the runoff, or third. On 3 February 2011, it was announced that he would participate
Michel Martelly on 'The Carnival,' "Surprise - it's Sweet Micky, y'all!" Also in 1997, Martelly released an album containing one of his most celebrated hits, Pa Manyen ("Don't Touch"). The song is an adaptation of "Angola", composed by the renowned artist/composer/record producer Ramiro Mendes (of the Mendes Brothers), first recorded by Cesária Évora, the legendary Cape Verdean singer. Pa Manyen went on to be featured in various compilation albums, including the popular "Putumayo Presents: French Caribbean" in 2003. The song was also covered by Venezuelan singer, Soledad Bravo as "Canta, Canta Corazon" and by Jose Luiz Cortes of Cuba. See also the