Shortly before Monday night’s Catholic-themed Met Gala, “Page Six” reported that tech billionaire Elon Musk was dating the musician Grimes. Much like the apostle Thomas, many refused to believe it until they saw proof — which arrived when the pair came to the event on a “date night” and Musk revealed that he had helped design Grimes’s dress.
And with that, a new unlikely celebrity couple was born into the world.
Let’s unpack what’s going on here.
Please tell me who one or both of these people are.
Considering how many people are searching for “Elon Musk’s goth girlfriend,” let’s have a little refresh. Musk, 46, is the founder of Tesla and SpaceX and has a net worth of $19.7 billion. You may know him from being Amber Heard’s boyfriend, launching a car into space, not knowing he was at a sex party, or trying to bust Tesla’s union drive by promising workers free frozen yogurt in lieu of collective bargaining. Grimes, née Claire Elise Boucher, is a 30-year-old beloved art-pop musician from Canada who is generally considered “cool,” an assessment that can only be bolstered by the fact that I — a person who usually just replays the same Warren Zevon or Fleetwood Mac albums over and over — have barely listened to her.
Besides Amber Heard, who else has Musk dated?
He’s been married three times: once to Justine Musk and twice to Talulah Riley (they divorced for the second time in 2016). In a Marie Claire article from 2010, Justine revealed that he said “I am the alpha in this relationship” while they danced at their wedding reception. He also reportedly frequently told her, “If you were my employee, I would fire you.” (Grimes, meanwhile, has previously been vocal about mistreatment by pushy male producers and has said she won’t work with them.)
Also, in a Rolling Stone profile from last year, he both asked the writer “Is there anybody you think I should date?” and confided that “If I’m not in love, if I’m not with a long-term companion, I cannot be happy.” These aren’t so much red flags as they are red tarps visible from space.
What is the public saying about this unholy union?
There was a wave of shock that someone widely considered arty and interesting is with society’s premiere dorky villain, but the news was also met with denial…
Anger…
Depression…
And acceptance…
“My initial reaction to Grusk was that if Grimes wants to fuck Elon Musk I still stan,” my friend Marian told me over Gchat. “I feel like there are not a lot of men who understand her interests.” My colleague Emily also empathized with Grimes. “I did hookup with a Space X employee once and I was smitten for two straight weeks, partially by his potential to explore space,” she explained. “So I get the appeal.”
How did they even meet?
Funny that you should ask, because it’s the backstory that has me firmly believing that the pairing makes perfect sense. (Also, they both give off sex nerd vibes.) Here’s the “Page Six” rundown, which gives me agita every time I read it:
Thought experiment Roko’s Basilisk considers the hypothesis of a future where AI lords over the world and could punish those who did not help it into existence. His joke was to merge this thought experiment with a pun using “Rococo,” referring to the ornate French 18th century baroque style, perhaps pointing out that both concepts are complex, too extreme and ridiculous.
And while this takes some explaining, arty performer Grimes was already in on the same joke — three years ahead of Musk.
Cursed anecdote!
So is he a fan of her music?
When asked, he shared that his favorite songs are “Flesh without Blood” and “Kill V. Maim,” both off her 2015 album Art Angels. Grimes has yet to share what her favorite Teslas are.
My brain is telling me no, but my heart is telling me that, yes, I need to know more about their Met Gala date.
Here’s a video of them dancing together, which Musk tweeted out on Wednesday, writing “Night at the museum. G has mad skillzsz. Me not so much.” But please do not be distracted by the moves or the caption, and focus on the fact that she’s wearing a FREAKING TESLA COLLAR. (Update: Musk says that the choker “is a bunch of spikes, not Tesla anything.”) If you want to know more about the outfit, Musk says: “Glass corset hand-painted in perspective in color of bone. Every detail tells a story. Spiked choker machined from a single piece of forged metal. Crown of Vantablack.” We get it, you’re goth.
Anything else?
There should be a wage ceiling.
