Though Errol has made headlines in recent years after the births of his two youngest children, he seemingly avoids the spotlight. [10] She gave birth to three children; Elon Reeve Musk born on 28 June 1971, Kimbal Reeve Musk born on 20 September 1972, and Tosca Musk born on 20 July 1974. While the story did mention the family once lived in a popular suburb, the article said nothing of the emerald mine providing wealth to the son when he moved to Canada in 1988, or to the U.S. in 1992. Like his son, the wealthy business owner who was once rumored to be the co-owner of a Zambian emerald mine has also been mired in controversy. Errol Musk, the father of Elon Musk, told British tabloid The Sun Wednesday that he had a second and previously-unknown child with his stepdaughter, Jana Bezuidenhout, in 2019 leaving many. The article's headline was changed in late July or early August 2020, which appeared to be after Errol made his Facebook poston July 27, which called the dated article's claims into question. "Elon Musk Is the Hero America Deserves." Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and his mother, Maye Musk. Maye and Errol divorced in 1980 when Elon was about 9 years old. Jump to Main content Search Account Menu icon A vertical stack of three evenly spaced horizontal. Reich, theformer secretary of labor under U.S. President Bill Clinton and a professor of public policy at University of California, Berkeley, had tweeted,"Elon Musk came from a family that owned an emerald mine in apartheid South Africa." He talks about the risk factors for Bitcoin as an investment asset including origin risk, speculative market structure, regulatory, and environment. The 76-year-old hasnt ruled out having more children, saying: The only thing we are on Earth for is to reproduce.. So I became a half owner of the mine, and we got emeralds for the next six years.". Beyond that, we were unable to find any evidence that showed money generated from his father's involvement in the mine helped Elon build his wealth in North America. On July 3, 2020, Elon tweeted about the subject again, responding to a since-deleted tweet with, "I don't have an 'emerald mine,' nor was I given free money from anyone, inheritance or otherwise. We sought evidence in the case that they still had any documentation from past decades about the mine, the around $100,000 in student debt that Elon has repeatedly said he had accumulated during college, or anything else related to Elon's early finances that they have mentioned in past interviews. First, we have republished past statements from both Errol and Elon. "Elon Musk Is the Hero America Deserves." Hull, Dana, and Patrick May. She won't speak to me or engage me if we're in the same room which we have been often.". " he told the outlet. Zip2's purpose was to provide "a searchable business directory that could be described as an internet version of the yellow pages telephone directory with maps included," according to Britannica.com. The emerald mine story, reported in 2018 in Business Insider, tells how, in the mid-1980s, Errol acquired a half-share in a Zambian emerald mine, which would help to fund his familys lavish lifestyle of yachts, skiing holidays, and expensive computers.. Musk readily jumps onto Twitter to refute the charges that his empire was forged with the aid of family wealth, and part of the reason he wanted to talk to merather comically given the rocket launch and, well, trollswas because the jabs bug him, and he hopes to set the record straight. Offers may be subject to change without notice. For a while, I thought things were so obvious that everyone must know this., However, Elon has disputed claims that he grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth. Fortier, Alexander. It was a lucrative decision. Elon Musk's father planned to fly a plane from South Africa to England and sell it once they got there. In addition to Elon, Errol is dad to son Kimbal Musk and daughters Tosca, Alexandra and Asha Rose Musk. To me, he sure is trying to make the world better right now, and that's the best thing he could do with his father's money. Went to Queens Univ with scholarship & debt, then same to UPenn/Wharton & Stanford. Are you prioritizing your cable entertainment bill over protecting and investing in your family? Ask him." In that context, its probably understandable that Musk decided enough was enough and felt he needed to answer the claims online. Copyright Blue Sky Publications Ltd. All Rights Reserved. On Wednesday, Errol confirmed that he and Jana had welcomed a second child, a daughter who is now 3. He also called the whole rumor "BS.". It was that lifestyle, Errol says, that turned Elon into the kind of merchant adventurer who would laterbreak the rules of the motoring businesswith Tesla, then go on tochange spaceflight with SpaceX, BI reported. Almost every evil thing you could possibly think of, he has done.". Errol admitted to having affairs, but his ex-wife, now a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model, said the problems in their marriage extended beyond infidelity, alleging that Errol was abusive. ERROL IS A RETIRED SOUTH AFRICAN ENGINEER. - February 10, 2021 02:34 pm EST. With a net worth of $37 billion, Musk hopes to revolutionize transportation on Earth and in space, bringing fully-electric vehicles to the mass market through his auto manufacturing company, Tesla. Errol and Jana welcomed a son, Elliot "Rushi" Rush, in 2017 and a daughter in 2019. Musk may not be a great guy, but I fail to see any apartheid link to his fathers emerald mine., @grard97 tweeted, Remind: Elon Musk owns an electric and autonomous car companyA private space landing rockets companyAn AI companyA Neuroscience companyA Solar Panel and energy storage companyThe WHOLE bank on the internet was started by him (yes, your credit card as well), @C49015142 tweeted, I thought I read in Malcolm Gladwells book David and Goliath that his company received $500 million from the US government, so we are all subsidizing him. It was revealed last weekthat he welcomed twochildren with an executiveat his artificial intelligence company, Neuralink, just weeks before hissecond child with his ex-girlfriend, Grimes,was born. Ashlee Vance interviewed hundreds of people. In a 2017 Rolling Stone cover story, the Tesla CEO described his childhood and revealed that he moved in with his father at eight years old after his parents split. "They didn't like it.". Elon Musk (~16 years old) & Kimbal Musk sold gems from the Zambian emerald mine to world-famous "Tiffany & Co." on Fifth Avenue in New York - one of the world's most famous jewelers. People.Com, 7 Nov. 2022, https://people.com/human-interest/who-is-errol-musk-elon-musk-father/. Chromatica Warrior @DebbieTweeted Can he be held responsible for his dads ethics tho? 1/2This article is false. In that way, Errol might be like estranged Elon after all. @spylinen tweeted, The mine was in Zambia, which became independent of the UK in 1964. ", He grew up in South Africa and had the good fortune of doing so in an upper-middle-class home. Business Insider South Africa, 23 Feb. 2018, https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musks-dad-tells-bi-about-the-familys-casual-attitude-to-wealth-2018-2. 2014, https://www.newspapers.com/image/878211644/. Hes the son of Maye Musk, a model and dietitian from Canada, and Errol Musk, a South African electromechanical engineer, pilot, and sailor. Nothing, nothing. I'm going to wait until he comes to his senses. Then he'd sue me and say that I was unfit to parent.". "Everybody I knew called him 'the Pig' because he treated me so badly in public. Maye and Errol divorced in 1980 when Elon was about 9 years old. This story will be updated if any further details come to light. Below, we have laid out all of the data that we found, including examples of the rumor, as well as stories from newspaper archives and blogs. "We were lonely, lost people," Errol said. So we got one, thank God at a discount, and with that computer he taught himself, using Disk Operating System, which is DOS, to program, Errol said. coming from?. ". In the meantime, Musk continues to make waves on multiple technological fronts, all while raising concerns about workers' rights and income inequality. In a February 2018 interview with Business Insider South Africa, Musk's father said he did own half share in an emerald mine in Zambia. "So we decided to head back to Lake Tanganyika from where we were, I think we were in Djibouti.". ANC accuses De Ruyter of ruining its good name and reputation, BREAKING: Chiefs confirm another MASSIVE injury blow. Later, on Sept. 20, 2022, hecalledRobert Reich "an idiot and a liar" for tweeting a video that pushed the emerald mine wealth rumor as fact. 2021, https://www.quora.com/Is-it-true-that-Elon-Musks-family-got-their-wealth-from-apartheid-emerald-mining. We sent these messages on Nov. 16, but did not receive responses before publishing this story on the following day. The billionaire, who was born in South Africa, took to. Elon tweeted that he had $100,000 debt after college. "Elon Musk Left a South Africa That Was Rife With Misinformation and White Privilege." The narrative of Elon Musks wealth coming from his familys apartheid gains is one that started a few years ago when Business Insider wrote an article highlighting the Musk familys involvement in mining during SAs apartheid years. In a 2019 . You have no idea. In 2017, Errol told Rolling Stone that while he has never intentionally hurt or threatened anyone, he once shot and killed a group of burglars at his home in Johannesburg, though he says he was cleared of all charges because he acted in self-defense. So we went to this guy's prefab and he opened his safe and there was just stacks of money and he paid me out, 80,000, it was a huge amount of money, he said. His mother Maye responded on Twitter in December 2019 in defense of Elon. ", The Tesla founder also said there was no way to repair his relationship with his father. "Exploring the Otherworldly Ambitions of Elon Musk." After the divorce, Elon lived mostly with his father until he left South Africa at age 17 partly to avoid conscription in the South African army. This story was picked up by other news outlets and peddled as a sign of the Musk family's "lavish lifestyle. odakyu11. He has also dismissed rumors that his father co-owned a Zambian emerald mine, writing on Twitter in 2019: He didnt own an emerald mine & I worked my way through college, ending up ~$100k in student debt. [9], Errol Musk's claims that he invested in Elon Musk's software company Zip2 have been rejected by Elon Musk. "And we got emeralds for the next six years.". Bloomberg.com, 22 May 2020. www.bloomberg.com, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-05-22/elon-musk-speaks-frankly-on-coronavirus-spacex-and-rage-tweets. Answer these 2 simple questions & WIN R1000 in cash! . Eligon, John, and Lynsey Chutel. In a rare interview with Forbes, Errol revealed that his parents were the first to ever fly from South Africa to Australia in a single-engine airplane. "They just walked into Tiffany's and said, 'Do you want to buy some emeralds?' Where is this B.S. Some of his most vocal detractors have promoted the idea that Musk, like Trump, began his career backed by the deep pockets of dear old dad. In the biography Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, author Ashlee Vance wrote that Errol invested $28,000 in Elon and Kimbal's then-fledgling company, Zip2. We've received your submission. It was kind of weird for them to walk into Tiffanys. "In my experience, there is nothing you can do," he added. Went to Queens Univ with scholarship & debt, then same to UPenn/Wharton & Stanford., In a follow-up tweet, Elon said his father didnt own an emerald mine & I worked my way through college, ending up ~$100k in student debt.. Its unclear how old Elon was at the time and whether he was even present is in dispute. Errol Musk, an engineer, owned a small percentage of an emerald mine and had a couple of good years before the mine went bust and wiped out his investment. He didnt own an emerald mine, and I worked my way through college, ending up [around] $100,000 in student debt, Elon tweeted. I can't see any reason not to. . ---. He will plan evil, Elon tearfully told Rolling Stone in 2017. Aside from that hes just dumb. "We went to . "One thing he claims is he gave us a whole bunch of money to start, my brother and I, to start up our first company. His grandmother broke barriers of her own, becoming the first-ever chiropractor in Canada. "I said, 'Oh, all right'. Musk, Errol. [2] His grandmother was the first chiropractor in Canada. Ive tried everything. He was such a terrible human being, Musk told the magazine. "They were confronted by it every day," he said. Rumor is Errol Musk owned an emerald mine. In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can trust. I wish. Errol and Heide had two children together, Alexandra and Asha Rose. Elon, by his father's recollection then probably 16 years old, and his brother Kimbal, decided to sell emeralds to Tiffany & Co. on Fifth Avenue in New York . Several respondents on social media disputed the emerald mine and privileged-lifestyle story, defending Musks intelligence and questioning the intelligence of the person who started the thread. Get down!'. [15][16] At the time of their marriage, Jana Bezuidenhout was only four years old and lived together with them. My dad will have a carefully thought-out plan of evil. Or they'd take the plane to Lake Tanganyika [in Zambia], where Errol had a stake in an emerald mine. Jana was 4 years old when Errol married her mother, Heide Bezuidenhout though he claims that he didn't consider Jana his stepdaughter, as she primarily grew up separate from the Musks. "Nothing, nothing. The Musk name might be one of the most recognizable on the planet, but little is known about its patriarch, Errol Musk. "Like every abused woman, I was embarrassed, and I knew I had made a mistake, you know? Errol Musk (born 1946) is a South African electromechanical engineer, pilot, sailor, consultant, and property developer who was once a co-owner of a Zambian emerald mine near Lake Tanganyika. However, both Elon and . Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future. According to the story, "When [Elon] was elevenabout the time that he sold his first piece of software, a video game called Blastar Musk told his mother that he was going to move back to Pretoria to live with his father, Errol, an electrical engineer who would later own an auto-parts store and a share in an emerald mine.". Photo: Cyrus McCrimmon/The Denver Post/Getty Images; Anthony Harvey/Getty Images, Elon Musk and Amber Heard's Relationship Timeline, Elon Musk Claims He Had 'No Choice' But to Make Mass Layoffs at Twitter, Elon Musk Buys Twitter for $44B Following Legal Battle with Company, Fires Top Execs: Reports, Twitter Founder Jack Dorsey Apologizes Following Layoffs at the Company After Elon Musk's Takeover, Twitter to Lay Off Several Employees Over Email amid Elon Musk Takeover: Reports, Employees Suing Twitter In Response to Elon Musk's Plans for Mass Layoffs, Elon Musk Goes to Heidi Klum's Halloween Party as Stars Vow to Leave Twitter Over Controversy, When Will Donald Trump Return to Twitter? But little else is known about Errol outside of his native South Africa, where he has made a name for himself as a high-powered engineer, property developer and political advocate who vehemently opposed apartheid. The headline of the story read, "Elon Musk Tells Me His Secret Of Success (Hint: It Ain't About The Money).". It didn't work out too well in the end," he said. ---. Errol Musk was born in 1946 in Pretoria to Walter Henry James Musk and Cora Amelia Robinson. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us.