Tesla founder Elon Musk was met by a chorus of boos at Dave Chappelle‘s stand-up show over the weekend. The new Twitter owner was invited onstage by the comedian at his San Francisco comedy show in video footage circulating online.
“Ladies and gentlemen, make some noise for the richest man in the world,” Chappelle told the crowd on Sunday, Dec. 11.
The South African-born billionaire got a raucous response that he described Monday in a tweet as “90% cheers & 10% boos,” but it appears the ratio might have been the other way around. Chappelle joked that the people booing were Musk’s former Twitter employees or people with horrible seating.
“It sounds like some of them people you fired,” Chapelle laughed. “But you know one thing, all those people booing, and I’m just pointing out the obvious, have terrible seats. All coming from way up there,” he added while pointing to the stands at the top of the Chase Center arena.
Musk thanked the creator of the “Chappelle’s Show” for bringing him onstage. “You n—– can boo if you want. This n—- gave me a jetpack last Christmas,” Chappelle told the crowd.
Audience members began booing again during a brief moment of silence. “Dave, what should I say?” asked Musk, to which Chappelle responded, “Don’t say nothing. It will only spoil the moment.” He added, “You hear that, Elon? That’s the sound of pending civil unrest. I can’t wait to see what store you decimate next, motherf-cker. You shut the f— up.”
“I am your ally,” Chappelle added. “I wish everybody in this auditorium peace and joy of feeling free. And your pursuit of happiness make you happy. Amen.”
For months, celebrities have expressed mixed emotions and criticism about Musk purchasing Twitter for $44 billion.
Back in April, rapper Azealia Banks thanked the tech mogul for her return to the social media platform after a lengthy suspension for homophobic tweets, as previously reported.
Meanwhile, social activist Shaun King noted that Tesla was previously sued for racial discrimination for harboring a racist work environment.
After taking over, Musk announced a wave of layoffs. Patrons received an email on Nov. 3 notifying them if they still had a job after Musk revealed plans to ax nearly 50 percent of the staff.
Bloomberg revealed that roughly 3,700 employees were laid off in effort to cut costs under the Musk’s management. In the wake of the massive layoff, several current and former Twitter employees are suing the company over claims of failing to give proper notice, retaliation, and severance pay.]
According to another lawsuit, reported by NBC News, women account for 57 percent of the fired workers compared to men at 47 percent. The lawsuit was filed by two women who accused Twitter of violating federal and California laws banning workplace sex discrimination. It also states that 63 percent of women lost their engineering roles compared to 48 percent of men.
It’s unclear how long Musk and Chappelle have been friends or associates. In January 2021, the pair posed in photos with Joe Rogan, Donnell Rawlings, Musk’s former girlfriend the Canadian musician Grimes, and others.
In May of that year, Chappelle opened up about his past encounters with Musk during a discussion on “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast. The Grammy-winning comedian described the cryptocurrency enthusiast as an “incredibly kind” person, recalling how he forgot they previously met.
“I teased him about being the richest man on earth, and he took it with good humor,” said the 49-year-old told Rogan. “What’s funny, I had hung out with him years ago. … We hung out on a tour bus, and he says to me that night … ‘I met you before.’ I’m like, ‘Well, I have no recollection.’ He looked kind of hurt.”
The Primetime Emmy winner also defended Musk for hosting an episode of “Saturday Night Live.” Many social media users questioned why he was even chosen to perform because he’s not a comedian, nor is he known for his witty banter. Some outlets felt the actual performance lacked cultural relevance.
Considering previous hosts, Rogan said, “No one is woke enough. They can’t appreciate the fact that you’re dealing with one of the most brilliant men that’s ever lived.”
Chappelle added, “Like you said, no one can be woke enough. I’m torn, because I like a warrior for a good cause, but I’m really into tactics. You’re not going to nag people into behaving. … In fact, if you continue with this tone, even if you’re right, you’ll be very hard to hear.”
