Elon Musk is giving what he says is the explanation behind the mysterious black eye he had during a recent visit to the White House meant to address the end of his formal government duties under President Donald Trump.
“I was just horsing around with little X, and I said, ‘Go ahead, punch me in the face.’ And he did,” Musk, 53, told reporters, referring to his 5-year-old son X Æ A-Xii Musk, who he shares with Grimes (real name Claire Boucher).
“I didn’t really feel much at the time and then, I guess, it bruises up,” Musk added of the alleged exchange with his young child.
“That was X that did that?” President Trump responded in front of reporters, before addressing the White House press pool. “X could do it. If you knew X, he could do it.”
Musk then referenced an earlier, seemingly heated exchange between French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, in which the French first lady was seen striking her husband in the face before they de-boarded a plane in Hanoi, Vietnam.
“(I) wasn’t anywhere near France,” Musk joked. (The Élysée Palace downplayed the incident between Macron and his wife, calling it “a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh.”)
Musk’s White House appearance and questionable black eye came on the same day as a bombshell New York Times report alleged the tech billionaire was taking so much ketamine that it was affecting his bladder.
The Times’ report, which included conversations with multiple sources, went on to detail Musk’s alleged drug regimen, which reportedly includes Ecstasy, psychedelic mushrooms and a daily medication box containing upwards of 20 pills, including Adderall.
Us Weekly reached out to Musk’s lawyer and rep for comment at the time.
In March 2024, Musk opened up about this prescription ketamine use to treat a “negative chemical state” while adamantly denying he abuses drugs.
“If you’ve used too much ketamine, you can’t really get work done, and I have a lot of work,” Musk told former CNN anchor and journalist Don Lemon, adding that a “normal” work day for him consists of 16 hours.
On Wednesday, May 28, Musk announced the end of his time as a so-called special government employee and leader of DOGE, a non-formal government agency established via executive order by President Trump and not through an act of Congress.
“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,” Musk wrote via X, which he owns. “The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”
