Elon Musk has admitted he was greeted by “a lot of boos” during an awkward on-stage appearance at a Dave Chappelle comedy show.
The controversial SpaceX founder and Twitter owner was introduced during a gig in San Francisco on Sunday night, prompting what appeared to be widespread jeering from those in the audience.
A clip posted on Musk‘s social media platform shows Chappelle asking the attendees to “make some noise for the richest man in the world”.
They promptly oblige, though likely not in the way either of the men intended.
“Elon,” says Chappelle, as he attempts to interject the hostile reaction.
“Hey Dave,” the billionaire replies, as the booing continues.
Musk quips to his host that “you weren’t expecting this” during an otherwise near-silent stint on stage, as he spends most of his almost five-minute appearance awkwardly standing still or pacing around.
He has since insisted “it was 90% cheers” that greeted him at the gig, and said the “10% boos” were a result of having “offended San Francisco’s unhinged leftists”.
“But, still, that’s a lot of boos, which is a first for me in real life (frequent on Twitter),” he added in a tweet.
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Laughs briefly interrupted the boos as Chappelle said: “Sounds like some of the people you fired are in the audience!”
Musk has overseen an exodus of staff at Twitter since taking over in October, with thousands of people sacked and many more deciding to quit.
His already contentious ownership has also seen previously banned accounts allowed back on the platform, the messy rollout of new premium features, and a warning from the EU about his approach to free speech.
Read more:
Former employees sue Twitter over sackings
‘Twitter Files’ allege right-wing figures ‘blacklisted’
Musk ‘looked stunned’ by reception
Before Musk takes his leave from the stage, Chappelle jokes that the people booing are those with “terrible seats”.
He shakes Musk’s hand before directing him off-stage.
One person in the audience said Musk “looked stunned” by the reception.
“Elon Musk just got booed like I’ve never heard before,” tweeted Ilana Stern.
“He couldn’t get a word in, the crowd booed for 10 minutes. Not favoured on his home turf.
“He looked stunned, must not get enough feedback IRL (in real life).”
Another attendee, James Yu, said he “actually felt bad” for the world’s richest man.
“I can’t believe he came on and did that,” he tweeted, adding: “Dave gave him so many chances to speak, but he just put his hands in his pockets.”
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