Grimes sternly denounces Nazism after ex Elon Musk’s controversial salute: ‘I am not him’

Hyperpop artist Grimes, who has three children with Elon Musk, has denounced Nazism after her ex-partner was criticised for making a controversial salute at Donald Trump’s inauguration.

The 53-year-old tech CEO made the gesture, which some compared to the Nazi salute, during the president’s inauguration on 20 January after thanking voters for “making it happen.”

The gesture was under increased scrutiny following posts Elon Musk had shared on X/Twitter, including calling a post accusing Jewish people of spreading hatred against white people as the “actual truth.“

Following Trump’s inauguration, political campaigning group Led By Donkeys projected a five-minute video about the billionaire onto the wall of his Tesla gigafactory in Berlin, showing how Elon Musk has continuously backed the far-right across Europe in recent years.

Given their past relationship, Grimes, whose real name is Claire Elise Boucher and who is the mother of Elon Musk’s children X Æ A-Xii, Exa Dark Sideræl and Techno Mechanicus, came under pressure to denounce the actions of her ex-partner, with one fan saying they were “hitting a breaking point” over her silence.

In a lengthy response a day following the inauguration, Grimes wrote: “While I deeply respect your concern – it is unhealthy that people are this upset when I have not even been online yet today and am only just learning about this controversy now. I don’t know what happened and I will not make a rash statement – I am not a citizen of this country.”

Grimes went on to say she felt it was “absurd” to be criticised for something their ex-partner did “before they even heard it happened.”

“I am not him,” she added. “I will not make a statement every time he does something. I can only send love back into a world that is hurting.

“To be clear I could go talk s**t and be on a bunch of magazine covers and be a feminist hero and get clout – but it would serve no purpose. I choose my children’s wellbeing.”

When pressed further by another fan to “denounce all the [alt-right]/Nazis that feel comfortable in your comments,” Grimes responded that she is “happy to denounce Nazism.”

“I’ve just gotten out of breakfast and have to catch a flight, and am still debating how to approach things diplomatically because I feel in over my head,” Grimes added. “But if there’s concern about that, I am happy to set the record straight in a meaningful way.”

The 36-year-old again denounced Nazism in a Tuesday (28 January) post addressing “some persistent trolls “on her social media.

“If it wasn’t clear – I very much denounce Nazi-ism and white supremacy,” she continued. “I am sorry I didn’t take this more seriously sooner, I did not realise the extent of the issue. But it has come to my attention from some of y’all that this has been creating a lot of trouble.”

In a later post, Grimes wrote: “I honestly thank the people who r still grimes fans [because] my god I have not made it easy for you haha. At this point it’s literally like some kind of mystical trial to harden the will.”

The musician has also come under fire recently for her own political views, including a post on X/Twitter advocating for the proposed takeover of Greenland by the US. The Arctic island of Greenland is an autonomous Danish dependent territory.

The BBC reports that Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede – who has pushed for independence from Denmark – insisted last week that Greenlanders “don’t want to be American.”

“I am ready for Greenland,” Grimes wrote in a since-deleted tweet. “Without it I do fear a Russian takeover of the arctic. It seems like the only way to stay out of war – otherwise, Russia will likely move into northern territory/drill in protected areas and we’ll be expected to defend.”